


those dawning eyes brought forth my own sunrise

by Marsali



Series: Like Starbursts So Bright [3]
Category: Mass Effect, Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Banter, Cunnilingus, Emails, F/M, Fingering, Fluff, Friendship, Happy Ending, Jill does stuff that isn't okay, M/M, Nepotism, Parenthood, Realism, Romance, Schmoop, Smut, Vaginal Sex, actual account of sleep paralysis, blowjob, canonical villain death, everybody gets to be happy, finally some action winky face, i totally copped out on the action scene, just buy some floss people, last part oh my god, there will be so much stupid sap in this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-08
Updated: 2017-09-27
Packaged: 2018-11-11 08:27:48
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 22,993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11144652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marsali/pseuds/Marsali
Summary: In which Sara fights an Archon, has new sleep problems, experiences all the nice things in the world, and finally finds her happy ending.Home is in the people you love, after all.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Part 3 of the Like Starbursts So Bright series
> 
> Story and Title inspired by “Home from Home” by Roo Panes 
> 
> Hello and welcome to me copping out on writing an action scene :D 
> 
> Took me a while, but here it is, the last part of the series. 
> 
> Thanks also to RebelMage because their amazing comments gave me the motivation to work on finishing this <3
> 
> This was beta’d by the amazing SilverSie/slagginbitch again <3
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

 

_What is a body made of?_

_Bones and flesh and marrow._

_Muscles, sinews, blood._

_Nerves and hormones._

_Rushing, releasing, flexing, and holding._

_When your body is out of control, when your mind has been invaded, and somebody seeks to destroy what you fought so hard for, what do you do?_

_What_ can _you do? If somebody overwrites your will with their own? Trying to crush it? Making it theirs?_

_Well, you could give up. Nobody would fault you for that. Your team, your family, wouldn’t. It hurts. They know that from your screaming._

_Throat burning, lungs trying to rip themselves to shreds, nails biting into palms._

_They know. They won’t judge._

_But what about you? Can you live with yourself, knowing you let yourself be overpowered? Knowing you helped the big bad beast of the night invade the home of your comrades?_

_It hurts, oh, how it hurts._

_But you can’t let the beast win. You won’t allow it, simply can’t._

_So, what do you do?_

_Well, there’s only one option, really._

_You grit your teeth. You bait your breath. Your stare the devil in the eye._

_And you_ fight.

 

* * *

 

Her breath left her in a rush as she slumped forward, almost falling out of her seat and just managing to catch herself. There was a whooshing sound in her ears as if suddenly somebody had taken her out of a vacuum where she was unable to hear anything that didn’t have to do with her task. Now she could hear loud footsteps echoing and the blood pumping rapidly through her veins. She could hear SAM asking if she could hear him and Scott screaming if she was still alive.

“We did it,” she whispered, hardly believing that it was over, that the little, snaggle-toothed monster that had taken her was dead. The big bad wolf. Vanquished.

Hatred surged in her chest when she thought of him. He had taken her from her new home and made her obey his will like it was nothing. Like he didn’t care what it did to her. And he probably hadn’t cared. She had been nothing but a tool on his way to greatness. Fuck, she was so damn glad it was over. She almost wished she had been able to do it herself. Just shoot the smug little fucker between the eyes and see the lights go out. That thought scared certain parts of her but other parts, darker, deeper ones, simply felt satisfaction at the idea. Nobody should be able to do something like that to other people. But what had she expected from someone that took the damn essence of others and warped it into something unrecognizable?

The Archon had been a monster. And now he was gone.

At least something had gone right. And Sara had helped make the universe a place that was at least a little less fucked up.

“Sara? Sara, could you please fucking answer me! Are you there?” Scott’s voice was tight, controlled. But she knew him well enough to hear the underlying panic in his tone. She could almost feel it vibrating under the tight constraints he had placed. Trying to break free.

She swallowed painfully and licked her cracked lips. She could feel a headache coming on behind her eyes that was promising to be epic. “I’m here, bro. All limbs attached and everything,” she told him, voice almost failing to deliver the words, straining under the weight of them.

“Shit, Sara,” Scott cursed and Sara could hear the footsteps starting to get louder and faster, too.

“Are you running?” Sara asked him, trying to get off and out of that damn chair the Archon had put her in. The idea that she was still sitting on this weird sacrificial altar was making her stomach churn. Shit, he _had_ offered her up like a sacrifice to be used and burned out for his purposes, hadn’t he? Bastard. She was so fucking glad he was dead. So damn, fucking glad. She was just one more person in this galaxy he had hurt. But no more. He couldn’t lay another claw on anyone else ever again. They had made sure of that.

“We’re _all_ running,” Scott told her, out of breath. “I’m pretty far from you, though. I’m sure somebody will be with you in a bit. Just you wait.”

“Not much else that I can do,” she snarked back, though she was pathetically thankful. She really didn’t want to be alone right now. She needed some physical reassurance that she wasn’t alone here.

Sara managed to sort of glide off the chair and scoot as far away as the strength left in her body permitted. Stars, she was so damn tired. She had to prop herself up with the palms of her hand to not keel over like a wet sack of potatoes. Who would have thought that mental exercise could have such a profound effect on the body? Sara felt like she had run a freaking marathon, when in reality she had been sitting on her ass and just _thinking_ really hard. It was bizarre. Nobody had ever told her that battles could be fought (and won) like that.

“Sara,” she heard a voice laced with subharmonics call out to her and she raised her dry, burning eyes to Vetra who was just coming around a corner. With a few steps of her long legs she was at Sara’s side and touching her shoulder. “Are you okay?” Her eyes were moving rapidly, probably because of the information her visor was giving her.

“As much as I can be,” Sara admitted. But it would have been futile to tell her she was all dandy, the way she was barely managing to keep upright.

“Your vitals are all over the place,” she was told, and by the way Vetra was hovering it was clear that she was worried.

“I can only imagine,” she mumbled back, tongue kind of thick in her mouth, which made her cluck it in annoyance.

“I wish Lexi was here. She could give you something.” Vetra crouched beside her. “I can’t give you any of _my_ stuff. It would only make you worse.”

Sara shook her head, trying to placate her. “It’s okay. I’m not gonna die or anything. I’m just tired.”

“I can only imagine.” Sara had a bit of a hard time reading turian facial expressions but the way Vetra was looking at her could only be described as fond (and worried, that hadn’t gone away). “You seriously kicked ass. I hope you know that.” She tilted her head. “You have a big brain in there, that’s for sure.”

Sara managed a snort and a crooked grin. “Yep. Brainpower, baby. Brings all the boys to the yard.”

“I’m going to ignore whatever that is supposed to mean,” Vetra told her with a put upon air but Sara wasn’t fooled. Vetra liked to act exasperated even when she really wasn’t.

Silence fell over them as they were waiting for Scott to arrive, but it wasn’t stifling or anxious. Sara was content sitting here (if you could call what she was doing _sitting_ , seriously, she had to look like a sad heap of _something_ ).

And then she was hearing the slap of different kinds of feet on the pavement and in a flurry of blue Jaal was storming towards her. Sara couldn’t help the slightly painful smile that spread on her lips. No matter the situation, Jaal was always a sight for, in this case literally, sore eyes.

He let his rifle fall to the floor beside her and Vetra had the good sense to get out of the way, already updating Scott on her status in a practical tone of voice, while Jaal sank to his knees beside her, arms hovering around her, as if afraid he might her hurt her with his touch, but still obviously needing to make contact somehow. Only just managing to hold back. 

In the end, Sara made it easy for him by listing sideways and into his upper body. His arms went around her immediately and Sara breathed in deeply, head still hammering, pressure behind her skull steadily increasing.

He smelled like electricity and ozone. Like a thunderstorm, really. It was soothing to her in a way that she didn’t really understand and even though her head still hurt, touching him was such a relief she could have cried. It was like a cool hand placed on a burning forehead. Like balm on a wound. Sara could have stayed here forever without complaint.

Jaal was breathing into her ear while he was clutching her to him, letting out little distressed noises that alarmed her, not because they were perfectly inhuman, but because they painfully got snagged on her heart. She’d never heard him make such sounds and actually could have lived happily never knowing about them. Jaal shouldn’t hurt because of her.

He let her go, slowly, fingers trailing along her body, as if he couldn’t stand to stop connecting with her somehow. He put both palms on her cheeks staring into her eyes, whole facial expression turned into something crumpled and awful.

“Hey, hey,” Sara said in a tone that would have better fitted for a small child. “I’m okay. Don’t look at me like that.” Her voice turned up at the end, as if she was asking instead of telling him. She was fine. He didn’t have to make that god-awful expression. Everything was fine now. They had won.

Maybe if she told herself that often enough she would get her stupid little brain to believe it as well.

And Jaal didn’t seem to take her for her word, either. He simply shook his head and Sara wasn’t sure what exactly he was saying no to so decisively. But then he bent forward and Sara was sure his lips would connect with hers, could actually feel a bit of happy anticipation build up in her belly.

But instead, he placed a kiss on her cheek and from there to her other cheek and then to her forehead. He started slowly, but his kisses soon got faster and a little desperate until he was seemingly kissing every bit of her face he could reach. It could have been a playful action but it really, really wasn’t. Every press of his lips felt more devastating than the first to Sara.  He put his fingers into her hair, holding on and in the end simply smearing his lips against her skin, lingering at her temple, nuzzling into her, kisses becoming one big thing he was trying to express to her. Sara wasn’t sure if she intellectually knew what he was communicating, but inside of her, something was responding by feeling pain and elation alike. Her heart hurt but it also started beating more steadily. Sometimes you just had to tell your head to shut up and simply let the body feel what it wanted.

“I was _afraid_ for you.” Jaal’s voice sounded unsteady when he finally spoke and Sara put her hands that had previously rested against his elbows, slowly up to his shoulders and then to his head. She tugged at him until he moved back a little and she could look him in the eye.

“Me too, big guy. Believe me.” She emphasized her point by stoking both of her thumbs over the apples of his cheeks and digging her fingers into the place behind where a human’s ears would have been, making sure he knew that she was there and that he could stop being afraid now. She was going nowhere. Not if she had anything to say about it.

Jaal pressed his lips together into the approximation of a smile. “Your strength makes me proud.” He looked down to his chest, before he directed his gaze back up. Sara wasn’t sure if he was just being bashful or if he had actually just looked down to where his heart lay. Did he feel her in there? Could he feel her as much as she felt her love for him, beating in her chest like a second heart beat that couldn’t be distinguished from the other, but made each thrum of life all the more powerful and worthwhile? “You make my heart sing.”

Sara’s already battered heart gave a valiant little flip, still new to such words and apparently not too tired to be delighted by them.

“It seems more like I’m making it cry right now. But yeah, turns out willing to wake yourself up out of a coma gives you some awesome mental control. I’m a superhero, Jaal.”

“I already knew that,” he told her making her laugh feebly.

“You’re nothing to scoff at, either. I saw you snipe at those kett. We need to have a shoot-off some time.” She leaned on him while she was making the slightly, ridiculous attempt to get up. Without him taking on most of her weight she would never have made it but he hesitated only for a moment before he got with the program.

“What is it you people say? It’s a date?”

Ah, Jaal. Always learning new expressions, even in dire situation. That was true efficiency right there.

“Yup,” Sara answered looking at Jaal and stroking the strong arms that were holding her up. She frowned. “You tore your rofjinn,” she told him, tugging on the fabric that wasn’t only ripped but slightly scorched.

“I have another one,” he told her simply, not taking his eyes away from her.

“Damn kett,” she grumbled, watching as Scott finally made an appearance in the distance and trying to straighten up a little for the hard impact that was undoubtedly about to come.

She felt so, so tired. Being upright took every little ounce of strength she had left out of her. She almost regretted getting up but actually huffed out a laugh as Jaal came to stand behind her while Scott hugged her tightly, sandwiching her neatly between them.

“Why do you do shit like this, sis? Trying to outdo me?” Scott grumbled into her ear, his armor digging uncomfortably into her skin. But she wasn’t complaining, hugging him back with a considerably less amount of force.

“You know me. I always have to be so competitive.”

Now that Scott was hugging her it really drove home the fact home that they hadn’t taken any losses whatsoever. None of them had died. The thought was so completely, ridiculously wonderful. The team was whole and hale; her lover was at her back, and her brother in her arms.

“It’s an unhealthy habit, clearly,” he told her, slowly letting her go, Sara’s fingers dragging over his shoulders, as if unwilling to let him go yet. “Can you walk, do you think?” He was eyeing her skeptically.

Sara waved his concerns away with a dismissive hand gesture. “I’ll manage. I’ve got an angaran crutch here. From what I hear they’re pretty helpful.” At her words, Jaal tightened the hold of the arm he had wound around her middle, and Sara put her hands on it, gratefully leaning into him.

Together they made their way outside, trek being substantially slowed down by Sara’s inability to walk faster, and also by her stubbornness that refused to let her ask to be carried. If Jaal ever carried her anywhere than into bed. That was the only permissible situation. Anything else she would damn well manage alone for as long as she was conscious.

She had to concentrate hard on every step she took. Had it always taken this much coordination to not twist her ankle? Did all of this effort usually just go down in the back of her head? Her brainpower must have seriously taken a hit because she could feel it up to the joints of her hips every time her foot connected with the floor. Jaal was basically lugging her around like a puppet at his side but never even once did he complain.

When they finally reached the door they were greeted by blinding sunlight that made Sara blink uncomfortably. She could basically feel how red her eyes had to be. But she didn’t really have much time to consider that, seeing as there was a huge crowd of people gathered outside, all cheering and clapping and whooping at them much more enthusiastically than her ears could handle right now.

But she smiled anyway because these exclamations of joy simply proved that they had really, actually done what they had known they had to do for months now. The biggest threat of the galaxy had been killed and Sara had truly, if unwillingly, played a huge part in that.

Something inside of her gave a sigh of relief at that. She’d finally earned her place here, hadn’t she? She’d done something to let them all know that both of the Ryder twins were a force to be reckoned with. She wasn’t so insignificant anymore.

She looked on while Scott was giving some form of rallying speech that he seemed to have made up on the spot (when had her weird brother become so self-assured?), incorporating the romantic hero he seemed to have turned into, before yanking Gil close by the arm and kissing him with so much passion, Sara would have blushed if her sluggish circulation would have managed it right now. God, there he was. The hero kissing his love. Sara was half wondering if she was hallucinating up a fairy tale in her exhaustion.

She turned a little in Jaal’s arms when the crowd finally became too much for her overstimulated brain and buried her face in his chest. He gently put a hand on the back of her head where she could uncomfortably feel her hairband.

Irritated, she raised her hand and tried to loosen it, but her fingers felt fat and clumsy. In the end, Jaal batted her hand away softly and pulled the band out, easing the tension it had put on her scalp and the back of her head. Sara sighed thankfully, offering up her hand and after a bit of direction Jaal understood that he was supposed to put the elastic band on her wrist.

They stood there for a bit. Simply listening to the others. A few times people came by to clap Jaal on the shoulder and loudly offer their thanks and admiration. Sara pretended to be asleep for that, which turned out to be a mistake, since closing her eyes made her even sleepier than she had already been.

“Don’t let me fall asleep,” she mumbled against him and had to repeat herself because her speech had already become sluggish. Jaal’s grip around her shoulders tightened.

“You’ve overcome a great hardship. You deserve rest, dear heart,” he told her, voice quiet, expression tight, when she turned to look at him. There was an oddly soft look in his eyes. It made for a combination that made Sara’s overtired heart flutter.

“If I fall asleep I’m afraid I won’t wake up again for some time. I don’t want to go through that again. I can’t.” Her voice broke, rough as it was from screaming. “What if I can’t wake up this time? What if I’ll stay gone forever?”

Jaal regarded her quietly for a moment, before bringing his head closer to hers until his face was all she could see, only an inch or so away from hers, drowning out everything else around them. He licked his lips. “You’ve said that it was me that gave you the final motivation to break out of your coma.”

She looked into his beloved face, remembering those weeks of him, sitting at her side, reading to her, keeping her company. Keeping her sane. Had anybody ever given her something as precious as that? “Yeah. Because it’s true.”

He smiled, apples of his cheeks becoming more prominent, the planes of his face turning from gorgeous to adorable. “Then trust me that I will do it again. I’ll always find you, Sara. You’ll always have me.”

With that he closed the distance between them, touching his soft lips to her chapped ones in a caress so tender it almost made her cry.

“Will you trust me?”

She was afraid to. But she was so, so tired. And Jaal wouldn’t lie, she knew. If he had to, he would sit at her bedside for months, no matter how uncomfortable the chair. She knew, because he had done it before.

“Okay,” she whispered, sleep already taking her.

Trust him?

Always.

 

* * *

 

Time went by as she slept.

 

But she didn’t know.

 

* * *

 

Her sleep was dreamless, which was a blessing. The time between closing her eyes and opening them went by in a literal blink. When she woke, she was in her quarters and the minute she sat up Scott was by her side.

“Hey, sleepyhead,” he greeted her. He looked good. Didn’t he have a scrape on his forehead after the battle against the Archon?

Sara frowned. “How long was I out?”

“Not that long. Two weeks.” Scott shrugged but there was something uneasy in his smile. He tried to pretend like two weeks were nothing. But they weren’t. And he knew that.

Sara’s lungs seemed to constrict or deflate or whatever it was that made it so you couldn’t breathe right. She tried to swallow the upcoming panic but something must have shown on her face because within a second Scott had climbed into bed with her and was hugging her close.

“One would think I would start to get used to this,” Sara wheezed slightly, trying to breathe through her nose as best she could while the air she was drawing in was doing its best to make her brain think it could never fit through there. It felt thick and sticky in her airways. Her lungs felt swollen and empty from it at the same time.

“You missed _nothing_. I promise. All we did was get some people here. We haven’t even had the official victory party, yet. We were waiting on you for that,” Scott tried to reassure her, voice colored by that tone people had when they tried to sound soothing while in reality they were freaking out and feeling helpless.

Sara hiccoughed out a laugh. “I don’t believe that. People like to party.”

“People _did_ party. But neither me nor Jaal nor the rest of the crew felt it was right to celebrate while you were still out of commission. So, we didn’t. Who cares what the others are doing?”

Sara blinked rapidly a few times, caught between disbelief and a happiness that was so tentative she could feel the tiny steps it was taking forward in her heart. “So, you’re telling me the almighty Pathfinder didn’t show up to all of the festivities? There were no speeches? Medals?” she teased him, the familiar territory helping her to put the ground back under her feet.

Scott was conspicuously silent.

“Oh my god. They gave you a medal!” Her incredulity helped her put the rest of her mini-panic attack behind her and she turned her upper body to look at Scott who had colored slightly but was grinning boyishly anyway.

“Special honors for furthering the cause of the Initiative.”

“Well, they certainly pulled that out of their asses fast,” Sara mused and Scott snorted. She rubbed her chest tiredly, still slightly feeling the burn of her lungs. Actually, her whole body hurt. There was a straining ache in her shins that she knew came from lying still for too long. Even if she hadn’t believed Scott’s words, her body was telling her plainly that she had been doing fuck all for some time.

“It’s shaped like a star. On a blue ribbon.” He waggled his eyebrows. “You got one, too.”

Sara’s eyes went wide. “Shut up, no I didn’t.”

Her brother raised his eyebrows as if he was taking on the challenge of proving his ridiculous claim before he got up and went to get something from the coffee table. He threw her a small, flat, rectangular box. She opened it with a frown and sure as fuck, there it was. All silvery and shiny with a ribbon in Initiative blue. “Well, fuck me.”

“Yep. The whole crew got one. I accepted yours for you because I knew how ridiculous you’d find the whole notion and I didn’t want you to give Tann the finger or something.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” Sara responded still eyeing the thing as if it might bite her.

“Stick out your tongue at him, then.” Scott shook his head. “Jaal was pretty psyched about it, though. Apparently, his mother is very proud of him, but he has been more focused on you. Keeps saying you deserve it. So strong. So beautiful. Such _mental control_.” Scott held his breast with both hands, swooning and falling backwards on the bed where he sprawled out his limbs and sighed a lovelorn sigh.

“You’re just jealous because Gil didn’t say anything about you being dashing or whatever,” Sara told him, gazing at the form of her brother with a big, fat lack of admiration. But she couldn’t help her heart doing backflips and somersaults in her chest. Jaal was proud of her. Jaal thought she was strong. He _admired_ her. Thought that she deserved this stupid medal.

How long had it been since she had resolved she would make him think of her as formidable for something he had actually seen her do? _Thanks, Archon. Thanks for letting me help kill you. You did my love life a great favor._

“ _I_ ,” Scott said and stressed the word. “Got sex. Which, in my book, is just as good.”

“I might still get sex. I might get sex and all the pretty words. Probably at the same time.”

And wasn’t that a visual? If she didn’t go up in flames from all the embarrassment of hearing something like that said to her face she might get to be on the ride of her life. And even if she _did_ die – what a way to go!

Scott grimaced. “I don’t want to know that about you.” He shuddered slightly before visibly shoving away the thought and moving on.

“Jaal is going to be super bummed that he wasn’t here when you woke up. He’s been here a lot.”

Her heart swelled. “He has?”

Scott shook his head. “Do you really question that after all that schmoopy goo that spilled out of his mouth since he met you?”

She could feel a smile taking over her face and had no inclination to stop it. Jaal was a pretty schmoopy guy wasn’t he? Sara hadn’t ever thought she would go for something like that, had actually sometimes made a point out of fake gagging during overly syrupy scenes in romance vids. But when those words came out of Jaal it was different. Making somebody’s heart sing, indeed.

“Anyway, I’ll call him here if you want?” He waited for her to nod. “Cool. SAM, d’you think you could tell Jaal that Sleeping Beauty is awake again?”

“Certainly, Pathfinder.” There was a pause. “He says he will be there soon.”

“How soon?” Sara asked, feeling a stupid sort of impatience take hold of her. She couldn’t wait to see him. She felt his absence so damn acutely. How had she managed to go without him weeks at a time?

“Approximately two point five minutes. He started running the second I told him.”

Scott actually face palmed before gathering the datapad he had apparently been looking at before Sara had woken up, and got ready to leave. “I don’t want to be here for this.”

He stepped close to her and ruffled her hair, no doubt making it look like even more of a bird’s nest than it surely already did. “Party, tomorrow at Vortex. 1900. Be there.”

“Sure thing.”

With that he was gone and Sara had to realize how long two point five minutes actually could be. If she strained her ears she could actually delude herself into believing that she could hear him coming closer. The idea made her laugh a little.

“Sara? I would like to congratulate you on your victory. I have not yet had the chance to do so,” SAM intoned making Sara startle and then smile.

“Thanks SAM. But you helped, too, didn’t you. So you deserve some gratulations as well.”

“Thank you.”

“Have you been partying hard?” Sara asked, stretching until she could hear her spine pop a few times.

“I lack the physical body to do so. However, I have been there in spirit. And I have experienced it through Scott’s eyes. He was not lying when he told you that he and the crew have postponed any serious festivities until you were awake.” The AI sounded like it was important to him that she knew that.

“That’s good to know. I had some shred of doubt left, you know?”

Before SAM could answer, Jaal burst through the door. Apparently, he had the entrance code. Huh. He had to really have been here a lot if Scott had given it to him. Or maybe…

“Did you hack my door?” Sara asked, eyes narrowed at Jaal, who was wearing a rofjinn different from the one he usually did. The blue was considerably darker and the fabric looked to be different as well.

“I would never admit it if I did,” he answered her, walking to her bedside and sitting down.

Sara had a second to debate whether she had morning breath or not, but in the end she decided that she didn’t give a fuck and settled for a close-mouthed kiss to Jaal’s lips that made her relax a little more and elicited a purring sound from Jaal.

“I’ve missed you,” he told her against her lips, stealing another kiss from them. Though could it be called stealing when Sara was so completely on board with his actions?

“I was asleep. But in the fifteen minutes I’ve been awake I totally missed you, too,” she playfully answered, bumping her nose against his in an eskimo kiss.

“I’m very missable,” he told her nuzzling right back and making her smile.

“How have you been? I hear things have been crazy.” She crossed her legs on the bed and let her shoulders comfortably slump forward. Gently, she took one of his hands into hers, instantly tugging off the glove and playing with his fingers. It was probably stupid how much she liked to look at them.

“People have been celebrating. Not only yours, though. I’ve spoken to my mother and apparently Havarl is a bit of a madhouse these days.” Jaal was looking at her hands fiddling with his as he spoke, letting her do what she wanted.

“I can only imagine. The kett threat isn’t gone but you guys must be so happy to have finally dealt them a major hit.”

“Yes. Evfra is still stubbornly skeptical about Milky Way species in general, but the Moshae has been very helpful in getting him to thaw a little. I can safely say that the bonds between our people are stronger than ever.” He chuckled as a thought seemed to enter his head. “I saw an angaran woman flirting with a human one yesterday. It was nice to watch.”

Sara snorted. “Aw. Soon we won’t be anything to stare at anymore, Jaal. People will be pairing up left and right.” She tried to link her fingers with his but gave the idea up in the end. His fused fingers wouldn’t allow for it. She settled for simply holding his hand in hers and it wasn’t like she wasn’t immensely enjoying that.

“People have finally started listening to me when I say humans are remarkable. And very compatible with angara.” Jaal playfully lowered his head, tilting it to the side and catching her gaze.

“Angara are pretty amazing, too. And amazingly pretty, as well.”

“All of us?” he asked big eyes blinking at her in a way she was sure was supposed to look beguiling but just made her stifle a laugh.

“Well, some more than others,” she purred back at him, before snatching another kiss from him. When she wanted to back away again, he chased her lips and she happily let him, staying where they both wanted her to be, letting her lips be caressed and caress in return.

It was so nice to just sit here and do this. There were no goodbyes on the horizon or threats lurking around the corner. They could just take their time doing this, reveling in the fact of how good it felt. They hadn’t had time before. To just be together. Being quiet together, basking in the presence of the other, marveling that they were here. Sara felt like she could have just looked at Jaal until she fell asleep again and she wouldn’t feel like time had been wasted.

“How’s your family?” she asked him when they had both been separated for a while, still touching here and there, hands wondering and idly exploring.

“They are well. My true mother and some of my siblings will visit Meridian soon. They look forward to meeting you.”

A nervous thrill ran through her body and she let out a forcible sigh. “I look forward to meeting them, too. Your mom’s been pretty awesome in her mails.” But damn if she didn’t feel the pressure to impress them all. “Who else is coming? Teviint? Finn?”

“Teviint is coming, yes. I’m not sure who else. They’re probably sorting it out through fistfights right now.”

“She over Akksul yet?” Sara asked, yawning a little and blinking tiredly.

“Stars, I hope so,” Jaal pressed forth in a fervent tone that made Sara chuckle again.

“Can’t see the appeal?”

Jaal shook his head. “It’s not that. Akksul is a formidable figure and rather good-looking.”

Sara raised her eyebrows. “Is he now?”

“I can appreciate many forms. As is evident from my regard for you.”

She smiled giving him another kiss for that. “Have you ever been with a guy before? Or someone that doesn’t identify as either?”

Jaal shook his head. “My experience is rather limited. I’m afraid I might be, what my mother calls, picky. I like to look. I like to compliment and appreciate. It’s only right that I do.” He stroked the backs of his fingers over Sara’s cheek. “I’ve only been in love once before, though, and I’ve told you that story.”

“You sure did.” That woman had to have been supremely stupid to swap Jaal for his brother. But the heart wanted what it wanted, right? And in the end this just meant that Sara was so lucky as to get Jaal all to herself.

Another yawn took over her face. Jaal frowned. “Should I let you rest, dearest? I can come back tomorrow.”

“No!” she immediately shot out, almost scaring herself with the vehemence behind the word. Jaal looked a little taken aback as well, before covering both of her hands with his, looking imploringly into her eyes.

“What’s wrong? Is something the matter?”

She licked her lips, not sure how she should ask what she wanted to ask him. And it didn’t help that her brain was rapidly getting more tired now. She didn’t want him to go. She didn’t want to be alone. Surely he would understand that, wouldn’t he? She was probably just worrying over nothing. She should stop doing that. It definitely took too much out of her.

“Jaal? I …” She sighed. “I know we haven’t really talked about this. About what we are. I mean. But I kind of like to think that we are… And I don’t want to presume anything …” She forcibly exhaled through her nose. God, why was this so hard? Moments ago things had been so easy going and here she was, complicating things again. Why couldn’t she just spit it out?

“I would like us to be together.”

Sara froze and raised her gaze to Jaal who was looking at her. His words had been so simple and confident, but she could see that they had cost him some courage. God, there he was, all tense again, but still not afraid to ask for what he wanted.

She got up on her knees and pressed a dry, gentle kiss on his lips, lingering for a few seconds. “I’d love that.”

A bright smile split his face and had his eyes shining like the dawning sun on a new morning. The beauty of it actually tugged on Sara’s heartstrings and she had to put a hand on her chest.

Jaal immediately started stressing. “What is wrong, darling one? Does something hurt?” He raised his hand to put it on her sternum and Sara promptly took it in hers and placed it over her heart, swallowing drily.

“It’s nothing. It’s just that … Sometimes, when I look at you my heart hurts. In a good way. Do you know the feeling?”

Jaal exhaled visibly, line of his shoulders gentling and eyes growing soft. He raised his other hand and put his forefinger under her chin, while letting his thumb tenderly glide over the skin of her cheek and jaw. “Yes. My heart bursts with the emotions I feel for you, as well. Sometimes, I can’t keep them all inside.”

“You shouldn’t try. I’m greedy. I want them all.” Sara turned her face into his hand, which unfurled until his palm was resting on her cheek. She pressed a lingering kiss to it, before putting smaller ones on each of his fingers.

When she raised her gaze back to Jaal’s face, his expression was so content it made any lingering doubts or nerves she’d felt go to sleep forever. She needed to stop doubting him and what he felt for her. Hadn’t he proven by now that she could tell him anything without being judged? Heck, most of the time he welcomed her thoughts so readily she had trouble believing that this person in front of her wasn’t a long lost extension she had finally recovered.

And she would never tell anybody she’d just thought that.

Well, maybe Jaal.

Maybe.

“So, what was it that you wanted to ask me?” he wanted to know from her, startling her into remembering that yeah, there was actually a point to all this, even though she wouldn’t complain about what else she had gotten out of it. Jaal wanting to be with her? Probably the best thing that had happened to her in Andromeda. And even if you considered her life instead of just this tiny bit of space she occupied here now, it still ranked in the top five. Easily.

But back to the topic at hand. He might still say no and Sara had to be prepared for that. She needed to make sure she would show no outward disappointment and say that it was no problem at all, no worries.

“I’m kind of afraid of going back to sleep alone. D’you think you might – that you would stay here? Sleep here? If I asked?” She put a hand in her hair, combing it out with her fingers, needing to do something, to distract herself a bit.

Jaal just got up and unhooked his rofjinn.

She blinked up at him, watching him as he neatly folded the garment and placed it on the floor. He caught her gaze and smiled a crooked smile at her. She could definitely see the mischief in his eyes as he also put is visor away. “What? Do you expect me not to make myself comfortable if I’m to sleep here?”

The breath that left Sara was also half laugh and she threw a pillow at him, which he deftly caught before throwing it back at her, hitting her on the head. “Dude, I’m still ailing here,” she protested, propping the pillow against the headboard of the bed before letting herself slump against it.

“Of course. You’re very fragile. Maybe I shouldn’t stay. I might roll on top of you at night, squishing you beyond recognition,” Jaal threw back at her easily, still busily unclasping and unhooking stuff on his suit. In the end, he was only wearing some form of tight, black underpants that went down to his knees.

“I wouldn’t mind you rolling on top of me,” Sara muttered, completely overwhelmed with all the skin that was suddenly on display. Yeah, she had studied angaran physiology in the past weeks but it was all very, very different when it was your angaran boyfriend (and a shrill girly voice was screaming the word over and over in her head like it was a chant for a demonic ritual) baring not all but like, two-thirds of his body to you.

“That might be arranged,” Jaal purred back, before he seemed to recognize that she was staring at him. His hands balled into fists before quickly relaxing again and he started fidgeting with his arms a bit, as if it was an effort to keep them hanging by his sides.

“Am I… pleasing to you?” he asked her and Sara would have laughed because there had probably never been a more ridiculous question in the whole of Heleus.

“Jaal, even if you were a werewolf bog monster from some marsh I would find you attractive.”

That did not seem to reassure Jaal at all so Sara got up on her knees and scooted to the edge of the bed beckoning him closer until she was face to face with his chest. “ _But_ ,” she stressed, putting both of her hands on the deliciously warm skin in front of her, tracing the patterns of what seemed to be the angaran version of freckles all over it. “Even though your personality is so beautiful already that I want to cry sometimes and ask every deity I know how I got so lucky,” she continued placing a kiss to his chest and letting her fingers roam further up, lightly stoking around the protrusions of hard muscle she found there, inciting a pleased purr from somewhere deep within. “I can really, honestly say that you are absolutely hot and stunning and sexy to look at, Jaal.”

She wrapped her arms around his middle, tugging him closer, and put her cheek against his belly, which was hard with muscles but still somehow soft, too. “I really love the tone of your skin. Is it rare?”

“Blue –” Jaal started but his voice broke a little and he had to clear his throat. “Blue hues are the most common but I wouldn’t say my skin tone is rare. Maybe it is comparable to the yellow hair color some humans have. Like Cora’s.”

Sara grinned. “Aw, I went and bagged myself a hot, curvy blond.”

“Are you teasing me?” Jaal asked but did not sound all that displeased by it. Sara was just glad she had gotten him out of the fit of insecurity she had unwittingly put him into.

“I might be. Whatcha gonna do about it?”

She should have known better than to challenge him. In a second, he had pushed her back and was on her, somehow finding each and every spot on her that had her giggle-screaming. “How,” she gasped. “How do you know about humans being ticklish?” The last word she drew out, kicking her feet and trying to get away from him.

“Liam told me things. Educational things,” Jaal said, grin wide and beautiful on his face and fingers dancing over her while she kept gasping for air.

“I’m going to kill him one of these days,” Sara wheezed out and Jaal finally let up on her, still smiling but apparently satisfied that he had defended his honor.

Sara relaxed back into the mattress, chest heaving and the odd giggle still stumbling over her lips. She felt flushed and had to blow a strand of hair out of her face. When it turned out to be a particularly stubborn bit of hair that wouldn’t be blown away by Sara (it really had no taste, apparently) Jaal lifted a hand and stroked it away.

Sara licked her lips and contentedly looked up at him as he was hovering slightly over her, face held up by his fist, elbow propped up on the bed. For a few moments they just looked at each other like that, neither one of them saying a word. Just looking. Drinking the presence of the other in. Finally getting some peace and enjoying it (on Sara’s part at least) with the one person they wanted to be with above all else right now.

A huge yawn split Sara’s face so suddenly she totally forgot to cover her mouth. Jaal simply huffed out an amused breath.

“Sleep?”

“Seems like. Unless you aren’t tired,” Sara immediately amended. She was a big girl. She could manage staying up until Jaal was able to sleep as well. She didn’t like the idea of him laying by her side, bored out of his mind, while she snored on.

“It’s late already. Some sleep would be welcome,” he told her, starting to right his position on the bed. Sara did the same and once heads were where heads were supposed to go and feet curled together in their respective places, Sara tugged the blanked over the both of them, before snuggling up close to Jaal and putting her head on the shoulder of his outstretched arm, which immediately curled around her.

“Comfy?” she asked him around another yawn, eyes already drooping.

“Very,” he told her with a sigh, squeezing her body tightly to his and Sara threw a leg over his thighs.

This was going to be the best night’s sleep she’d ever gotten.

 

* * *

 

Famous last words, right?


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... Hey, party people?
> 
> I'M BACK! Be honest, who thought this would ever happen? Glad to surprise you. Also, shame on you for doubting me ;) 
> 
> Okay, so here is chapter 2 of the last part of the series. I hope you have fun reading! 
> 
> I'd like to express a big thanks to missleaves and Nano111Desu whose comments made me want to finally finish this thing! Thanks for your lovely comments! 
> 
> Also a big THANK YOU to SilverSie aka slagginbitch who beta'd this thing again :) <3

When she woke up she didn’t quite know it at first.

Everything was dark and where she lay, she felt tethered to the bed.

In her dream (was it a dream?) her whole body had sunken into the mattress and there was no chance to ever move without help.

She strained a bit against the pressure keeping her down but to no avail.

She tried again.

And then once more.

With much more effort than it should have taken, she managed to get her eyes to open only to regret it instantly.

It was so, _so_ dark.

And in the darkness of the room she looked around and to her right side she could make out a shade darker than even the darkness of the room.

She wanted to scream, but couldn’t.

She wanted to _run_ , but couldn’t.

The shape stood there, towering, black, and foreboding.

It didn’t move for a long while and Sara didn’t dare take her eyes off it.

Maybe it couldn’t move when it was seen. Maybe staring it down would prevent it from doing anything to her.

But then the shape seemed to bend in the middle, toward her face, and she couldn’t help but let her eyes flit away, unable to close them again, but unwilling to stare the monster in the eye, the mouth, the teeth.

She felt a small gust of wind come from her right and for a bit she puzzled about what it could be; where it was coming from.

But then, with a jolt, she suddenly knew.

It… it was _breathing_ on her.

Everything inside of her seemed to constrict at once. She strained and fought, but still, she could not move. This all felt so familiar. Why did it feel this familiar? When had she ever felt like this before and why was this happening to her now?

It was then, with a feeling of dread, that she remembered her coma. Her endless months spent in complete isolation and paralysis. Why was this happening to her _again_? Hadn’t she suffered enough? Hadn’t she gone through enough?

Which was when it occurred to her that… that maybe the waking up part had been a hallucination. That perhaps she had dreamed it all up in her desperation and this was still a coma. That this was still her reality.

It felt like she should have been crying but even that wasn’t possible. Instead, she still felt the breath of the dark shape on her right cheek, cold and unfamiliar. It disgusted her in a way she had never been disgusted and made her feel helpless and young and afraid.

She thought she could hear a sort of wet sound that came accompanied with exhale and felt the panic in her chest spread through her in tiny thrills that reached to the tips of her fingers and toes.

Was this hell? Or a version of it?

She sobbed a soundless cry inside her head, imagined herself thrashing from left to right, but sensed that nothing was actually happening.

She could feel the little hairs all over her body stand on end, the breath on her cheek suddenly feeling more pronounced and colder, wetter. Stars, _how close_ was the thing to her?

Sara was too afraid to look.

She spent endless agonizing moments like this. Trying and failing to lift even the smallest of her fingers. Feeling watched. Fighting against her body and the fear that was keeping a hold on her.

It took her forever to even form the thought. But after what felt like an eternity – an eternity during which the shape did nothing but breathe and Sara seemed to do even less than that – she managed to pull herself together a bit and decided that maybe…

That maybe she should. Try to put her gaze back on the thing beside her. Perhaps it would go away if she looked at it again. Who knew what it might want. What it might be afraid of.

So, with the biggest chunk of bravery she had ever put in anything (more than she had needed to come to Andromeda, even) and the deepest feeling of dread she could have possibly felt in that moment she slowly let her eyes roll towards her right.

There was nothing there.

She blinked. And with surprise and toe-curling relief she realized that she could move again.

Sara instantly sat up and told SAM to turn on the lights a bit, so that a dim glow illuminated the room.

Jaal was snoring at her side, sprawled wide, limbs close to her, but not touching. They had apparently inched away from each other in their sleep.

Sara swallowed drily, her heartbeat still elevated from what had just happened. She drew her knees up close to her chest, the blanket straining tightly over them, and propped both arms up, one hand sinking into the sweaty mess of hair sticking to her forehead.

Her lips felt chapped where she pressed them together tightly.

She knew, of course, what had just happened to her.

Sleep paralysis. Probably brought on by the stress of her ordeal with the Archon.

Sara stifled a curse. Damn that little bitch. How dare he still have power over her, even now when he was nothing more than a corpse. Now that he was nothing more but a heap of bones and flesh, decomposing, bloating, _dead_.

Fuck, she felt disgusted with herself and her mind for letting all of it get to her so much. And of all the ways to cope with the stress, her body had to choose the one thing that was giving her panic attacks on a semi-regular basis anyway, even without actually having to experience it all again?

Shit, the helplessness. The sheer loneliness of laying in the dark and being paralyzed was enough, but then…

What the hell had that thing been that she had dreamed up? Standing there, _breathing_ on her…

Sara shuddered and let herself fall back onto the mattress, limbs sprawling for a second, before she drew her legs up into a fetal position, trying to make herself smaller and more secure.

Jaal started grumbling at her side, his snores stuttering, before he let out a few noises Sara had never heard anybody make before, but that made her breath huff out amusedly despite what had just happened to her.

“Who is tomorrow, no” Jaal told her, which made Sara’s eyebrows shoot up.

“Have to grate yesterday” he continued, before he turned to his side.

“Sara isn’t here” Jaal also told her, sounding grumpy about it.

“Wrong, big guy” she whispered to him.

Jaal let out an inquiring noise, so she scooted closer to him and managed to cuddle up to him, head tucked under his chin and nose pressed to his throat. It took some slightly ungentle maneuvering on her part, but in the end, he had his arms wrapped around her and was snuffling into her hair.

Sara took a deep breath and let it out.

_In. And out. In. And out._

After a while it started to hurt less and breathing became a normal thing again.

And if she clutched Jaal tightly to her body until her muscles unlocked one by one again and she fell back into a fitful sleep, nobody had to know but her.

And if Jaal was wondering about why the light was on once he woke up from his own slumber, he never said anything.

 

* * *

 

At precisely 1900 the next day (because Sara was nothing if not punctual when it came to parties) She was standing with Jaal in front of the door to _Vortex_ , as dictated.

“You might have to carry me to bed after all this,” Sara warned Jaal while taking his hand into hers.

He chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind. It’s you that was so opposed to being carried before, if you remember.” He gently squeezed her fingers.

Sara rolled her eyes but shot him a fond look out of the corner of her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. But if _you_ remember, it was the idea of being carried somewhere _other_ than a bed I didn’t like. You have my total consent to any and all the bed carrying.”

“Good to know,” he told her, sneaking a kiss from her that lingered a bit and made her lips tingle. Sara hummed appreciatively, chasing after Jaal’s mouth for a second when he drew away from her.

She sighed. On the one hand, she really wanted to spend more alone time with Jaal. They had filled the day by cuddling and talking to each other. Sara hadn’t wanted to tell him about her episode the previous night, but there was something about her lover that made it completely impossible to keep secrets from him. It had all just spilled out minutes after they had woken up.

But Sara didn’t have any regrets. She’d gotten cuddles out of it and Jaal had made her promise that she would wake him up if something like that ever happened again. She wasn’t sure if she was actually going to take him up on it, but the offer was appreciated all the same.

So, anyway. They had had the whole day to themselves, only leaving the room to get something to eat, mindful that they were probably going to drink _a lot_ tonight. It just wasn’t a good idea to do that on an empty stomach, especially since Sara probably shouldn’t be drinking at all, taking into account her super weak physical state. The comment about needing to be carried had mostly happened because she knew she was going to get tired much earlier than she was going to like.

The day with Jaal had been wonderful. But even she felt like it was time to spend some quality hours with the crew of the _Tempest_. Especially, since they had actually put off their private victory party for her.

So, that was the other side of it. It wasn’t like she really minded. Jaal was going to be there anyway and the whole crew had witnessed their first kiss. They simply had no grounds on which to protest if Sara and Jaal decided to go all mushy on each other tonight.

Without stalling any further, they stepped through the doors and where instantly greeted with cheers and yells of their names.

In seconds, Jaal was leaning against the bar with Sara propped up on a stool at his side. Both had been adamantly handed a drink and been made to take a sip of it.

“Is anybody missing? I feel like there’s somebody missing,” Sara said, voice a bit rough since her drink had burned down her throat like gasoline.

She didn’t hate it though.

“Peebee is fashionably late,” Liam supplied, taking a sip from his beer.

“Figures.”

Sara’s eyes kept flitting into a dark corner where Scott was standing with Gil, both of them gesticulating wildly. What was that about?

“How long have they been arguing for?” she asked and Liam turned around to follow her line of sight.

“Oh, it’s been a bit. Gil came in a bit after Scott and whispered something into his ear. Scott got all weird. Eyes kind of crossed for a second there. They went into the corner after that.”

“Do you have any idea what they might be talking about?” Jaal asked from behind her, echoing her thoughts exactly.

“Nope. But I’m thinking we’ll find out soon enough. Scott and Gil aren’t all that great at keeping secrets from the crew.” He was probably thinking about the boxer shorts incident in the _Nomad_.

Sara knew that Liam was essentially right, but as she took another sip of her sick drink she couldn’t help the cogs turning in her head. She couldn’t really infer anything from their hand gestures. It just seemed that Gil was slightly defensive. Scott looked mostly upset.

Stars, they weren’t breaking up, were they?

“How are you doing anyway, Sara?”

“Huh?” She jerked her gaze back to Liam, who shook his head and pointed his thumb to his right were Lexi and Suvi had materialized.

Lexi rolled her eyes and repeated her question.

“Oh, uh… Pretty good, I think. I’m still wiped but I guess that’s to be expected.”

Lexi nodded and her expression turned vaguely disapproving. “I suppose it’s of no use telling you that you shouldn’t be drinking tonight.”

“Smart _and_ pretty,” Sara told her winking outrageously, making Lexi snort delicately.

“Careful there, Jaal. Looks like your girl likes blue just as much as pink,” Liam intoned, grinning broadly.

Jaal didn’t say anything at first, but instead stepped closer to her until his chest was pressed against her back. He put a hand on her hip and nuzzled against the side of her head, breathing hotly into her ear.

Sara could feel her lids start drooping and a shiver worked its way down her spine. She instinctively leaned into him. As always, Jaal wasn’t nearly close enough.

“And this,” Jaal said softly. “Is why I’m not worried.”

Sara’s face instantly felt like it was on fire and she forced her lids back up hastily, trying to compose herself.

As the others laughed Jaal straightened back up, but didn’t back away from her.

“Anyway, there’s nothing wrong with appreciating someone else’s looks.”

That statement made Sara raise an eyebrow and she craned her neck around to look at Jaal’s expression. Warmth spread inside of her chest as she noticed that Jaal was looking at precisely nobody else but her.

“Urgh, look at those sappy faces,” Peebee’s voice came from her right.

The asari sauntered up to them, making grabby hands at Liam’s drink, who promptly held it out of her reach, while practically producing another one from thin air. “Stop trying to take my stuff.”

“I’m not the smuggler here,” Peebee muttered around the rim of the bottle.

“Which makes you much more dangerous than Vetra,” Liam answered, earning himself a loud boo from _both_ parties.

“You know, Liam?” Sara asked her drink, straw in her mouth, slightly chewing on it. “I really kinda hated you for a long time.”

Liam looked at her with big, uncomprehending eyes while Peebee guffawed. “What, why?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Sara answered. “The thing is, you need to stop alienating people. That’s the ancient wisdom I would like to impart on you today.”

“Okay, you can’t be drunk from just two sips,” Liam said in an amused tone of voice. Sara ignored him and relaxed into Jaal completely, correctly assuming that he wouldn’t let her fall.

“She probably isn’t back on her feet entirely yet,” Suvi supplied with Lexi agreeing.

“I like your accent,” Sara confided in her, making her smile.

In reality, she wasn’t all that drunk yet. But she felt mellow and calm and had apparently decided to switch off any unnecessary filters. She didn’t really have to be careful with what she said to these people anyway. And playing drunk was always fun. You got to say what you really wanted to without any possible repercussions or conventions holding you back.

“Okay, party people. Listen up!” Scott’s voice suddenly exclaimed, slightly raised.

He and Gil were coming out of their dark corner. Finally.

“Okay, so.” He cleared his throat. “I got a few things to say.”

“Speech!” Peebee yelled, only to have Drack cuff her on the head.

“He’s already holding a speech. Shut up.”

“No need for violence, grandpa!”

“Shut it, both of you!” Vetra yelled back at them both, before making a gracious hand gesture, telling Scott he could proceed now.

Scott had assumed a really unimpressed expression. “Thanks. So nice of you.” He sighed. “Okay, somebody gimme a drink. I need a drink for this.”

Sara drew together her brows, intrigued. What the hell was going on? Scott seemed like something bad had just happened and Gil was looming behind him, equal parts looking frowny and excited. It made for a weird looking grimace on his face.

Scott took a swig out of the beer bottle Liam had given him (seriously, where was he getting all those drinks so fast?) before raising both his hands.

“So, first things first. This is the party we’ve all been waiting for the last two weeks while my sister was getting back on her feet.”

Cheers erupted.

Scott looked at her, raising his bottle into her direction. “So, first of all, let’s drink to Sara. For having a bigger brain than is good for her and for keeping the Archon busy long enough for us to come help and for helping us put him down for good. Sara, you’re awesome. I missed you so much while you were in your coma. And I want to apologize for being a dickhead again. For not visiting you.”

Sara swallowed hard. Scott was looking her deep into the eyes.

“Everything is better with you around. I want you to know that. You’re my big sister and you always will be. And I think I’m speaking for everybody when I say that we’re looking forward to going on missions with you and kicking ass by your side.”

Sara couldn’t help but grin at that, which in turn, made Scott smile all the broader too. “Everyone! To Sara!”

“To Sara!” everyone in the room echoed and they all took a sip of their drinks.

It might not have been the grandest or most eloquent speech in the world, but it still meant a heck of a lot to Sara. Scott’s and her relationship was slowly mending and it was things like this that helped the healing along. Being acknowledged like this in front of all their friends, being thanked for her part in everything. That he put himself out there and admitted his wrongdoings in front of them when he really didn’t have to, when some of them probably already knew anyway. It just…

It just meant something, alright?

“And now, of course. To all of you. My crew, my friends” Scott continued. “You’re the best team I could have wished for.” He looked at all of them individually. “When I came here I never thought I would end up being pathfinder. I was so completely terrified at the start. I don’t know if you noticed.”

“Oh, we noticed” Cora spoke up, the uncharacteristic remark making everybody in the room laugh again.

“Right.” Scott rolled his eyes. “Cora, Liam, Vetra, Peebee, Suvi, Kallo, Lexi, Drack, Jaal, and Gil” he continued reserving an extra-long look for Gil, who was still shuffling around awkwardly and who looked completely relieved that Scott was addressing him at all. “You all have become my family. You made everything so much more bearable. I couldn’t have done it all without you and I hope I’ll never have to be without you in the future.” His smile was taking on a gentler edge. “You’ve all helped make the impossible possible. You’re the best. I love you guys.”

Half the room broke out in various cries of ‘aww’ while Scott planted a kiss on Gil’s mouth, with Jaal telling everybody in the room sincerely that he loved them as well, which was met with more laughter and pats on the arm for the big guy.

It was all so stupidly affectionate and ridiculous. Everybody was having such a good time already, some of the crew clearly farther into their cups than others. They really reminded Sara of a patched together sort of family. It was so, _so_ nice to get to be a part of this.

“Now, one last thing, before I let you all drink yourself under the table,” Scott said, raising his voice enough to get everybody to shut up. “So, basically, I just want to make sure that all of you agree there might be space for another little someone to become part of this family.”

Sara frowned, looking about the room and seeing her confusion echoed on most of the others’ faces.

Scott cleared his throat. “Well, turns out, Jill doesn’t really know the meaning of the words ‘wait until the Archon is dead’ and so, she decided to get herself pregnant with our sperm.” He shrugged. “Long story short – Gil and I are going to become parents within the next year.”

For a second everybody was frozen in silence.

Sara was blinking rapidly, eyelids fluttering like a hummingbird’s wings. “What the hell?” she muttered and Scott shrugged again. This was fast becoming his motion of the night.

“Yay?” Peebee decided to ask tentatively and all eyes flew back to Scott.

“Yeah, it’s unexpected, and Jill and I will be having words, but… I’m going to be a daddy!” Scott yelled out the last sentence and with that everything dissolved into chaos.

Jaal was the first one to reach Gil and Scott, crushing them into a fierce hug and telling them repeatedly that he was so happy for them and offering his services as a babysitter.

All the others crowded around the two of them as well, and Sara could see all of this turning into a big puppy pile into the near future.

She met Scott’s eyes above it all and gave him a bright smile and a thumbs-up.

She’d get to her brother later. Her hug for him would last longer than any of the others’ combined anyway.

 

* * *

 

The morning after the party Sara woke up sluggishly, wrapped in a cocoon made out of bed things and Jaal.

She didn’t move the first few seconds after rejoining the land of the impossibly awake. Instead, she enjoyed the warmth and softness of her little nest, relishing in the feeling of being protected and safe.

When she did move, it was only to lazily draw shapes on the rubbery softness of the freckled skin on Jaal’s arms, connecting the little flecks of fuchsia and magenta into nonsense constellations that only she could see.

She ended up putting her lips there too, wanting to know how he would feel against the thin skin of her mouth, and liking it so much that she didn’t stop at a few soft kisses but instead showered his arm in petal soft presses of top and bottom lip.

Jaal hummed softly behind her, drawing her back closer to his chest and mouthing the skin on her neck.

“Why would you kiss me when I’m not awake to feel it? I want to feel all of your kisses.”

A sort of happy warmth crawled into Sara’s cheeks and made her blush. “All of them? Are you sure?”

She felt him nod. “They are mine.” His tone was teasing but the notion still sounded completely amazing and welcome to her.

“That so?” she asked anyway, before she nipped at his skin instead of kissing it. “What about bites? Are those yours too?”

He growled playfully and turned her around in his arms with ease. He drew one of her hands up to his face and nuzzled into her palm. “I like them as well” he muttered into her skin, pressing a kiss there, before scraping his teeth over the fleshy part towards her thumb. “As long as I am allowed to return the favor.”

Sara felt breathless. At once, she suddenly realized how close they actually were. How big his body felt wrapped around hers. His size had been a turn on from the start so it wasn’t a surprise to her that it _really_ did it for her now. 

She instantly let her legs tangle with his so that every inch of her was pressed against every inch of him. His skin was hot and the heat he radiated seemed to seep into her, waking a fire inside her that never quite seemed to go out altogether. Instead, it simply waited until Jaal might rouse it again from slumber.

She could feel herself clench.

Licking her lips and instinctively pressing her thighs together Sara angled up her head and Jaal took the hint. He bent his head down to let his lips connect with hers.

It was still new enough, this thing between them, that kisses such as these had the power to make her toes curl. The press of his lips felt electric and to a degree it was. Jaal was projecting like a madman again, but this time Sara had every confidence that he was doing it on purpose. It wasn’t the hectic, painful shocks he had given her when he had been sick. Instead, what he was doing felt methodical, but in a good way. As if he was trying to let her know on a deeper level how she affected him. It felt warm. Even affectionate.

With a shaky sigh she pressed her upper body against his and in turn, felt the arm she wasn’t lying on move until his hand was on her ass. With a fluid but powerful movement, he drew her hips to his, making her put her leg around his thigh.

She had only worn her shirt and panties to bed so the new position spread her legs in a way that made her core seem exposed and vulnerable in the best way. When she gasped with the new feeling, Jaal took the opportunity, and stroked his tongue against hers.

She clutched at him, moaning. She let herself get lost in the feeling of her lover’s lips, every touch of tongue against tongue making her nerves buzz throughout her whole body until it felt like she could shake out of her skin any minute.

“You’re so good at that,” she muttered between kisses, kind of embarrassed to say it out loud, but needing him to know anyway.

 “I don’t have that much practice,” he answered, though he sounded pleased. “Maybe you are simply biased.”

Sara couldn’t resist and bit his plush bottom lip, before trailing kisses up the soft skin of his cheek, smearing her lips against it and reveling in the way it felt. “Or maybe your kisses were just made for me.” She grinned into him. “See? Your kisses are mine too.”

“And the bites,” he added and punctuated his statement by scraping his lips against the side of her throat.

The feeling went straight to the place between her legs and she couldn’t help the whimper that escaped her.

Attentive as Jaal was, of course he noticed. And of course, he did his damndest to get her to make the sound again.

Within moments he had her clutching his bare shoulders in a vice grip and making the stupidest sounds. Nobody had ever paid so much attention to any body part of hers that wasn’t her boobs or her pussy. Which probably said more about the lovers she’d had in the past than about her. In any case, she would never have guessed that she could get so worked up over a few kisses and bites.

“Are you… you aren’t leaving hickeys, are you?” she asked him, not quite sure if she even cared, but it just wasn’t _done_ once you had reached a certain age.

“Hickeys?” Jaal asked distractedly, nose inching its way down towards the valley between her breasts. His left hand left its place on her butt and wandered up her thigh to sneak under her shirt and stroke the skin over her ribs.

“Marks. On my neck,” Sara answered breathlessly, waiting anxiously for him to finally cup her breast. Her nipples felt swollen and sensitive against the fabric of her shirt. The only thing to be able to soothe that feeling surely had to be his hand.

“Oh.” He paused, breath hot on her sternum. “I might have.” As he answered he finally put his hand where she wanted it to be. Whether it was by accident or whether Jaal knew exactly what he was doing she didn’t know. In any case, the way he rubbed her nipple with the pad of his thumb sent a hot spark of heat through her and she couldn’t (nor did she want to) suppress the moan that worked its way out of her throat.

“Not sure I really mind anyway,” she told him. Her back was arched and her hips started to work themselves in helpless circles, rocking against Jaal in a way that so blatantly and shamelessly said only the one thing.

And this thing, this language, was apparently universal enough that Jaal abandoned her breast pretty soon (Sara had an inkling that he wasn’t all that sure what to do with it) and let his hand trail down.

And the way he did it! So agonizingly slow were his movements that Sara could have cried out in frustration, hadn’t she been so busy biting her lip in anticipation.

When he finally reached her thighs, finally touched the fabric of her panties there, she felt her jaw tremble from the tension that strung her whole body tightly like a bow.

He drew some mindless circles there, like Sara had done to his arm when she had woken up earlier.

“Oh, god, Jaal. Please. Please just, touch me.” She pressed her lids together tightly, immediately embarrassed by her needy words and tone. But fuck, she was just so ready for it. She needed it, needed _him_. She was going to fucking die if he didn’t put his fingers where they should be and _soon_.

But Jaal didn’t seem put off by her pleading. Instead he uttered a low moan and clenched his fingers spasmodically around her hipbone. His breath was touching her increasingly sweaty skin hotly and Sara felt every puff of air as acutely as his fingers on her.

He raised his head and pressed his forehead against hers. For a second, their eyes connected and the intimacy of it almost made Sara’s heart beat out of her chest. Here he was. Jaal. Hands on her. Eyes on her.

Making her feel good and liking it.

She couldn’t help but surge forward and take his lips again, the drive to do so was too powerful to ignore. She had said that she wanted all Jaal had to offer. It had never been truer than right at this moment.

Sara was so immersed in this new round of kissing that it took her a second to notice that Jaal was moving his hand again. It would probably have taken her even longer, had Jaal not nudged her leg off his thigh and pushed her to lie on her back. Hovering over her he settled his big hand on the soft flesh of her inner thigh.

She instantly spread her legs wide, granting him easy access. He broke the kiss, instead opting to angle his head downwards so he could watch what he was doing.

Sara swallowed with a clicking sound, licking any traces left by Jaal off her lips.

And then Jaal finally let his fingers trail lightly over her pussy, which was still covered by her panties. But even this feathery touch over fabric that had to be positively soaked through was enough to make her twitch under his fingers and stifle a gasp.

She burrowed her nails in the meat of his shoulders, needing something to hold onto.

Jaal was breathing hard. He sucked in his lips for a second, before looking back up at her, slit pupils blown wider than usual.

And while he stared at her, he lifted his hand, only to slip it under the seam of her underwear. Only to slide it over her mound, nudge between her lips, and finally, finally, oh god finally –

“Sara Ryder, I am sorry. But Director Tann is most adamant in wanting to talk to you.”

At that, Sara actually let out a frustrated scream and Jaal froze the way he was, hand down her panties, but still not quite touching her where she needed him.

“SAM, you have to be fucking kidding me right now!” Sara growled and Jaal didn’t seem to be any more pleased about this than she was. When he reluctantly withdrew his hand she wanted to cry tears filled with hatred.

“I’m sorry. I have been putting him off for days now and he is threatening to override your locks and storm your quarters.”

“Let the little bitch _try_.” Sara growled, mournfully eying Jaal and thinking about all that could have been.

Jaal looked back at her with a wry quirk of his lips that seemed to say ‘what can you do’ and ‘we could always murder Tann’ at the same time. But maybe that was just wishful thinking on her part.

Sara sat up and put both her hands on Jaal’s cheeks, looking deep into his eyes.

“Continue this later?”

“I would love nothing more” he answered, voice still rough with arousal.

Sara groaned, pressed a last kiss to his lips, and went in search for her pants.

She had a salarian to murder.

 

* * *

 

To be quite honest, Sara couldn’t remember all that much about the party.

 _Vortex_ was closed to anybody but the pathfinder’s team, which made it easy to just let loose and enjoy the party.

She remembered hugging the shit out of Scott and talking to him back in his and Gil’s corner, drunkenly trying to assure him that everything would be alright and that he would be a good dad. She wasn’t sure if he bought it, so she was pretty certain that she would have to have this conversation a few more times with him, until his panic went down somewhat.

Gil, as it turned out, felt extremely responsible for what Jill had done, even though he had done nothing to encourage her to go ahead with the insemination early. It seemed like he was definitely doubting their friendship now, which sucked, but Sara couldn’t do much about that and totally understood where he was coming from. The way he and Scott had looked talking about it all definitely made more sense now. They both felt betrayed and Sara got that completely.

She also knew that she had played cards with Kallo, Drack, and Lexi, only to lose spectacularly to Kallo, who, as it turned out, was not above counting cards, even when it came to playing UNO.

And didn’t she get a communication from Sahuna sometime during the party? She wasn’t all that sure but she could vaguely recall typing something embarrassing, maybe?

She had no clue.

What she remembered most of all, though, was slow dancing with Jaal to the most obnoxious synth music ever known to mankind.

But she had felt sleepy and still mellow from the alcohol. She’d wanted to dance with Jaal and he had let himself be persuaded easily.

But once they had entered the dance floor she’d wanted to be close to him and the music was all wrong for that. So she had started whining about that until, in the end, she’d simply stepped up to him, put one arm around his waist, manhandling his arm until he put it around her back. Then she’d snatched his hand and let their joined palms rest on his upper chest.

And swayed along with him.

Sara had no idea how long they had done that. But she remembered his current flowing through her gently, making sure she was warm from head to toe with happy feelings. She remembered resting her cheek against him, once in a while stealing soft kisses from him and smiling widely whenever Jaal let Sara hear that content rumble of his.

The sounds of the others, even of the music, had faded into the background and Sara had just been able to exist within this cocoon made of her lover and herself.

 

* * *

 

**A Visit**

To: Sara  
From: Sahuna

Dearest Sara,

My son informs me that you are recuperating well. He also tells me that you are officially together now, which begs the following question: how can it be that we haven’t met yet? I finally need to see this person my Jaal is so enamored with. Once you’re well enough to travel you will come to Havarl and officially meet the family, won’t you?

I’ll make pie and everything. I’ve been practicing.

Sahuna

 

*******

 

**Re: A Visit**

To: Sahuna  
From: Sara

Totes malotes, future mommy-in-law.

Pie is awesome. Please make two.

Sara


	3. Chapter 3

Later turned out to be a _few days later_.

Tann had needed her damn signature. And why that hadn’t been able to wait, he was unable to explain to her.

After that, she’d had a lot of things to do. More forms needed to be signed to grant her access to the _Tempest_. To become part of its crew.

Additionally, Harry had imprisoned her for a whole day, making her go through an excessive physical that he told her was regulation for any Initiative members about to ship out, but Sara had very ambiguous feelings about believing him.

Then Keri had wanted an interview with her. Her point of view on the whole Archon business. She’d mostly let Sara ramble on, which seemed to be her style. Sara had made sure to tell her to spell her name without an H at the end.

On and forth it went and she’d hardly gotten a second to herself, let alone time to work up enough desire to want sex. Every day had left her bone tired, and while her body had feebly tried to stir up some arousal whenever it came into contact with Jaal’s it just didn’t quite want to happen.

Jaal, for his part, had spent a lot of time with the moshae, helping her find her way around on the now parked _Nexus_ and introducing friends and officials alike to her. And while Jaal was extroverted enough not to feel drained by an excessive amount of social interaction, the negotiations and diplomacy needed for his temporary spot at the moshae’s side required getting a certain amount of rest to do it well.

Their evenings had, thus, consisted of cuddling into one another’s arms and sleepily telling each other about their respective days. Jaal had, nice as he was, helped with cracking her spine (Sara tended to hunch over in a way that always made painful kinks appear between her shoulder blades that she couldn’t get out by herself no matter how much she wriggled and stretched) and Sara stroking any remaining tension out of Jaal’s back with the palms of her hands and the tips of her fingers, Jaal all the while arching into her touch like a big cat.

The evening they finally got around to having sex started in a pretty similar way.

The difference was that Sara had had the day off and Jaal, as far as she knew, had nothing planned for the next day.

Sara wanted to jump him from the second he walked into her quarters, but didn’t like the way the idea made her feel. It felt too planned and unnatural. Could there be anything less romantic than scheduled sex?

“Hey, Jaal,” Sara greeted him casually from the couch.

“Hello, dearest,” he replied, taking off his rofjinn and neatly folding it before coming over to her and kissing her upturned mouth. “Have you been sitting here all day?”

“Might have,” Sara responded, clutching her datapad closer to her. She’d been reading more of Cora’s asari huntress stories.

“Who were you hiding from?” he asked her perceptively as he sat down at her side, drawing her legs onto his lap, gently stroking her ankles.

“Everybody. I had nothing scheduled today. Hiding here made sure it stayed that way.”

Sara wriggled her toes a little.

“To think that weeks ago I would have killed for having something to do. Look at me now. Look at the mess I have become,” she exclaimed dramatically sliding down farther on the couch until her knees were bent and she was probably sporting an impressive double chin the way she was turteling down her head.

Jaal snorted, grabbing her ankle and pulling until she stretched out her leg.

“You aren’t hiding from me, though.”

“No?” Sara asked, a little puzzled but game for whatever he was trying to start.

“That is a big mistake on your part.” He made his voice deep and growly.

“It is?” Sara squeaked, playing along.

Which was when he pounced on her outstretched body, causing Sara to shriek and throw her datapad on the carpet in a feeble attempt to catch him.

He landed on her with an oomph, still taking care not to put all his weight on her at once, but ending up sprawled out on her anyway.

“Ah, a new bed. I have been searching weeks and weeks for one. Thank you.”

She couldn’t help but giggle, turning her head away from him, because he needed the space between her neck and shoulder to bury his face there. “I’m not your bed.”

“Are you sure? I think you’re lying.” He snuggled in deeper, letting out an over the top sigh, while actually _wriggling_ on top of her.

“No. I’m not. You came to the wrong house. We don’t sell beds.”

“Sell? I thought you were a gift given to me. Are you telling me I don’t deserve a reward for all the things I’ve done?”

“No?” Sara answered his incredulous and vaguely hurt tone, stretching the vowel of the word until there was nothing left to stretch.

“I need a good night’s sleep, bed. I’ve been toiling and struggling forever. Do not deny me my recuperation.”

Sara was at a point where her laughs were simply escaping her in little huffs through her nose without making any sound as they came out.

“Bed! Answer me! Are you saying my troubles were for naught? Bed? Bed!”

Jaal had now lifted his head back up and was staring at her with fury on his features, but his lips kept twitching.

“I’m not beholden to you, wretch,” Sara managed to press out in a semi-serious tone.

“Wretch?” Jaal repeated in mock offense.

“You come in here and claim me as your bed. What else could you be? Wretch!”

“This is an outrage! I demand –“

But Sara never found out what he demanded because she cut him off with a kiss that consisted half of teeth, because Jaal was still speaking and she was still grinning. Jaal huffed out his own laugh while obligingly returning the kiss.

“You’re weird,” Sara told him, kissing his nose pointedly after stating the fact.

“You are a bed. Tell me which is worse,” Jaal shot back, gaze warm on Sara’s face.

“I’m a comfy bed, apparently. I can live with that.” She tried to stretch beneath him, but could hardly move a muscle, pinned as she was.

“I’m comfortable, too.”

“I’ve got no proof of that, sir,” Sara told him, affecting a dismissive tone.

She let out a little yell when suddenly Jaal grabbed her and reversed their positions so that she was lying on his chest.

“Say I’m comfortable.” He punctuated his request with a poke of his forefinger into her side, making her try and get out of his reach.

“I’m com-comfortable,” she pressed out, already giggling again.

Jaal growled a little, but before he said anything more, Sara noticed something.

Jaal’s ungloved hand had snuck under her hoodie and was now resting on her bare skin. That in itself wasn’t that remarkable (though she loved his touch, _goddamn_ ) but she could also feel the same fizzy buzz she had felt all that time ago in the cultural center and also a few times since she had woken back up after her stint with the Archon.

She tried to compare it to how it had felt to her the first time and her initial impressions were still the same. It was bubbly, in a way. A bit sticky sweet as well, maybe. But in a good way. Her comparison to champagne or sparkling wine was still apt. The longer Jaal was filling her with his current, the warmer her chest got and it felt like her cheeks were getting hot as well.

“Sara? What is it?”

Sara bit her lip, remembering that last time they had talked about this, Jaal had seemed disappointed with her inability to figure out what he was trying to tell her with his bioelectricity.

But now? Now she had a bit of an idea what it could mean.

What was it that made you feel lightheaded and tipsy during the first stages? Made shivers run down your body and gave you goosebumps for no apparent reason?

What was sweet and what stuck to you wherever you went? What was persistent enough so that it took you a long time to get rid of it if you wanted to?

What made you blush and warmed you from inside out? What lit a little flame inside of you that went with your wherever you traveled?

 _Stars_ , she’d been so stupid. Or maybe she’d just been afraid. Hadn’t wanted to assume. Or maybe, she simply hadn’t been ready to understand what he’d been telling her.

Sara sighed, heart starting to beat a little faster at first and then a lot. She looked down at Jaal, staring into those beautiful, alien eyes, wondering how she had ended up here. Trying to memorize every step of the way so that she could find her place right here again should she ever be led astray or get lost.

She lifted up a hand and put it on Jaal’s brow, lightly caressing the skin there. Her lips trembled a little as she drew its corners up into a soft smile.

“I love you too, Jaal.”

Jaal’s mouth went soft and slack when he heard the words. He was staring back at her for a bit, eyes wide and irises flitting from left to right, as if looking into her right eye and then back to her left, unable do decide which to focus on.

He swallowed visibly and then let out a small, disbelieving puff of air. The buzzing against her skin turned up a few notches until Sara could feel her body starting to shake from it, making her snort in amusement and wonder alike.

“You really like hearing that, huh?” she asked him stupidly. But really, what else could she have said?

That was when the biggest, sunniest smile she had ever seen on him broke out on Jaal’s face. He threw his head back a little, laughing his deep belly laugh, before lifting both of his hands to put them on her cheeks. He had the sincerest sort of expression on his face.

“I love you so much, Sara Ryder. I love you so much it’s like a flame within my chest. You make me strong. And you light the path ahead.”

Sara had to huff a little laugh through her nose again, still unsure how this had become her life. How she had managed to get everything so right.

“Sorry, that it took me so long to figure out what you were trying to tell me. To be fair, though, it was a bit like learning a new language.”

She took a kiss. And was given a second one. And then another.

“You don’t have to apologize. I could have said something, too. The important part is that we got here in the end.”

“And where is that?” Sara said in a hushed tone, suddenly afraid to destroy the moment with loud words.

“Together.”

For a moment they simply looked into each other’s eyes. The intimacy of that still thrilled Sara to the core. To be able to look at another person like that without feeling self-conscious, without feeling acutely how long you’d been at it. At this point, she could have looked at him like this forever.

“Could we be together in bed, d’you think?” Sara asked coyly once the thrumming need within her began to increase to a level that wouldn’t be ignored.

Immediately, she could feel the flavor of Jaal’s current changing. It became… spicier in a way. Hotter. It made something inside of her clench and then release so deliciously that she shuddered from head to toe.

Taking his reaction as a yes she scrambled up, not caring how undignified it looked, and hurried over to the bed. She could hear Jaal follow close behind and when she stopped and turned around at the foot of the mattress he was there, drawing her to his chest and pressing his lips to hers.

In a way, it felt like he was storming a castle. A castle that had the drawbridge down and all soldiers taking a nap somewhere in the wine cellar, but still. The way he kissed her was all passion, his hands burning mitted shapes into her back.

They were wearing too much clothing and Sara told Jaal so but it took some time until they managed to extricate themselves from each other long enough to shed a few layers. Jaal ended up in his long underpants again while Sara stood in front of Jaal, panting, only wearing her sports bra and panties.

For a second they came together again, heated skin of their bellies touching, making both of them groan. Jaal put a hand in her hair, gently fumbling off her hair tie and putting it on his own wrist, making her smile.

As Sara sucked on Jaal’s tongue she could feel him explore the edge of her bra, where the elastic band of it touched her skin. She dug her nails into his upper arm for a second before drawing her head back.

“Want me to take it off?” she asked, voice deeper than usual, already sounding embarrassingly wrecked. God, but she had waited so long for this.

“Please. I want to see you.”

 

She nodded and backed away a bit, aware that there was no sexy way to take off a sports bra. So she tried to make quick work of it, even managing not to get it tangled in her hair. Once she was free she threw the garment aside carelessly, really having no need for it whatsoever.

Sara stepped closer again, swallowing drily and taking Jaal’s hand into hers, fitting his palm neatly around the swell of her breast.

“You can squeeze them and move them around a bit,” she whispered to him, closing her eyes when he did as asked.

He raised his other hand to cup her other side as well, massaging both breasts gently obviously unsure how rough he could be.

“The little nubs? The nipples? Pinch them. You can do it hard. It’s better for me if you do” she mumbled, eyes still closed, all focused on the sensation of finally having his hands on her.

She flinched and let out a moan as he rolled the pebbled skin of her nipples roughly between his fingers, head falling forward a bit. The sensation sent sparks down her body to her core where she could already feel the first hints of pleasure building.

Jaal let out a heavy breath, taking both hands off of her boobs and instead putting pressure on her ribs, guiding her to let herself fall backwards onto the bed. Sara did so without complaint and Jaal, stars bless him, took off his pants before joining her by lying beside her on the bed, body facing hers.

Sara licked her lips letting her gaze trail down his body. Most of it was already known to her by sight and touch. She could feel her heart beating a bit faster once her eyes had fixed themselves on his pelvis.

Where a human man’s penis would have been Jaal was displaying folds that formed an oval shape. The folds reminded Sara of some sort of flower, deep purple in color and glistening with some sort of fluid that Sara guessed had to be lubrication or precome or something similar.

Licking her lips she lifted a hand and let it hover over that place. “Can I touch?”

“Please,” Jaal said, voice tense. “But gently.”

“Gently,” Sara echoed, before deciding that her hands just wouldn’t do for this. Sitting up, she drew her legs up under her body, facing away from Jaal, and indicating to Jaal by putting pressure on his thigh, that he should lie flat on his back.

She used his chest as a prop for her upper body and leaned forward slightly coming closer and closer to Jaal’s most private place.

And licked.

She took the little punched out sound Jaal made as encouragement and began to explore in earnest. The outer edges seemed to be the least sensitive but the closer she came towards the dip and give in the middle the louder the sounds Jaal made became. She focused her attention mainly on that, curling her tongue inside and a little under, while giving Jaal something else to concentrate on as well, by stroking her fingers along the outer rim.

The folds themselves didn’t seem to move much on their own, but Jaal compensated for that by the little jerks his hips made and that he didn’t seem to be able to stop. Sara could feel how tightly strung his body was and when she looked up once, she saw that he had fisted one of his hands into the blanket beneath him.

Sara couldn’t have felt any prouder in that moment.

Just as she was thinking that this wasn’t all that different from eating a girl out (though the taste was completely different, but still good), she could feel something press against her tongue and drew her head back to look. Slowly, as she was watching, Jaal’s cock emerged from within the protective folds, glistening with the same fluid that covered them.

It was about roughly the same size as she would have expected from a human man, but was completely smooth, dusted in freckles much as the rest of his body and mostly purple and pink in color.

She did the only thing any living breathing person would have done.

She gave the head an experimental suck.

Jaal’s hips bucked instantly but before Sara could celebrate her success too much, she could feel his hands on her, drawing her back.

“What –“ she started to say but was interrupted by Jaal.

“This is going to be over too soon if I let you keep doing this.”

God, but his voice was better than any aphrodisiac right now. Not that Sara needed any help in that department. She could feel how wet she was and the fact that she could feel it at all was already a testament of how much she needed him.

“Okay. So what do you want to do?”

Jaal let his burning gaze travel down her body. “I want to return the favor. And then I want you to ride me.”

Sara drew in a shaky breath, trying to not give into the temptation of touching herself as she felt an aroused tug down between her legs.

Instead of answering she lay back on the bed lifting her hips invitingly.

Jaal didn’t hesitate for a second, before moving between her legs and hooking his fingers under her panties, drawing them off her hips.

Sara inhaled another shuddery breath and spread her legs wide.

She could feel his gaze on her as if he was touching her with it. Heat rose into her cheeks as she lay there, exposed to his eyes, comparatively cold air hitting her heated flesh. Sara made herself look at Jaal’s face and the effect that had on her was devastating.

She had no idea why but watching him watch her really, really did it for her.

For one insane moment she thought she couldn’t have been more aroused, but then Jaal just had to prove her wrong by kneeling down at the foot of the bed and hooking his arms under her legs, pulling her down until her crotch was level with his face.

She didn’t have any time to build up another wave of anticipation.

The first lick made her tremble.

The second made her moan.

At the third and all the ones after that she had no idea what sounds she made. Jaal’s slightly rougher than human tongue was fucking made for this and she told him so during her exclamations of pleasure.

She only had to direct him once to focus on the little nub up top but then they were pretty much good to go down the spiral towards what promised to be an awesome orgasm. Blearily, she kept thinking that she hadn’t even come yet, but this was already the best sex she’d ever had.

Sara was moving her hips in tiny circles, the movement helping along Jaal’s efforts wonderfully. She couldn’t help but arch her back when an especially hard pulse went through her and Jaal took the opportunity to slide a finger into her.

She outright gasped at the added friction, unable to stop herself from bucking her hips against his finger, making sure that she could feel the slide of it all the better. 

“Oh. Oh god.”

“Good?” he asked her, his breath hitting her, making her clench around his finger.

“Mhm,” she pressed out, eyes closed and arms spread above her head like a symbolic signal of her surrender.

“Can you… finish like this?” Jaal asked her as he pressed a thumb against her clitoris.

The timing almost made her laugh. “Yeah. I can.”

“Do you want to?”

Sara almost said yes. But then the image of Jaal lying between her thigs, her sitting astride him, taking him in and being able to see his face as she did that popped into her brain. And it turned out, she was rather in the mood for that right now.

“Come up here,” she told him, Jaal stopping in his ministrations and taking away his fingers.

Jaal moved to hover over her and she drew him down, hastily wiping his wet chin and cheeks before kissing him, chasing her own flavor on his lips.

“Still want me to ride you?” she asked him and the way his eyes closed for a second told her all she needed to know, even before his verbal answer.

“I would like nothing more.”

Jaal lay back on the bed and Sara straddled him, letting her core simply rest against his hot, slick shaft for a second. She couldn’t help but indulge herself a little, so she moved her hips a little, feeling the slide of his shaft along her folds and rubbing her clit deliciously. She closed her eyes in bliss, doing it a few more times, listening to Jaal’s breathing coming out a little more ragged.

When she opened her eyes he was looking up at her, expression drawn with pleasure and eyes warm.

She smiled a private little smile at him, before lifting up her hips a little, just far enough to be able to take him in. Moving down one hand to position him, she slowly let herself sink down, inhaling sharply at the stretch, feeling him drag along her walls.

Jaal put his hands on her hips, fingers digging into the soft flesh there, breathing shallowly through his mouth.

Sara was turned on enough and wet enough that she didn’t need any more time to adjust to him. But she still didn’t start moving immediately. Instead, she savored the moment for a bit.

Him and her finally being one. He felt right inside of her. Heavy. Good.

“Can you do you buzz thing, during?” Sara asked him, feeling like it was the one thing still missing.

He didn’t answer her, but the pangs of his pleasure that were suddenly filling her were enough of an answer anyway.

Sara’s hips jerked the moment he did it and this was when she began to move in earnest.

It took her a few tries to find the right angle for both of them, but once she did, boy did she go to town.

It didn’t take either of them very long.

With Sara’s clit rubbing along the place above Jaal’s cock, where his slightly raised folds acted as the most perfect thing for her then and there, and the way Jaal’s current was egging her on _and_ the fact that she had been waiting for this moment for so, so long …

She could feel the knot of pleasure that had formed between her legs tighten by one more impossible tiny fracture, felt her whole body tense even harder… and _shattered_ around him.

She let out broken little thing of a cry as she started to clench around him and this turned out to be Jaal’s undoing as well, though the noise he let out seemed to her equal parts surprise and pleasure.

Together, they found the top of the mountain, and together they jumped off it, happy with the person they had taken along for the trip.

As they both were coming down slowly, they looked at each other, panting and, in Sara’s case, sweaty, trying to catch their breath.

“So, the clenching thing …” Sara started, letting the sentence dangle, as it was still hard to manage both breathing and speaking.

“Was new.” One of the corners of Jaal’s mouth drew up a little.

“Good surprise?”

“Oh, yes,” he answered with an emphatic nod.

“Good to know I can also bring something to the table.”

“Sara. I honestly believe that I couldn’t handle you bringing any more than that.”

Which had Sara let out a snort that dissolved into giggles, before she slowly dedicated herself to the process of getting off her lover.

And once Sara had gone for some tissues and the both of them were as cleaned up as they were going to get without taking a shower, they snuggled up, skin to skin, no barrier between them.

Jaal dimmed the lights and they lay there together, quietly talking, planning, stroking each other tenderly.

Of course, in the end, they started another round.

Not that anybody would have blamed them.

 

* * *

 

Two weeks later Sara boarded the _Tempest_ as a crew member for the first time. And started on a different kind of adventure.

 

* * *

 

**Thoughts so far?**

To: Sara  
From: Kesh

Hello Sara,

How is the Tempest treating you so far? I know you’ve been looking forward to this and hopefully everything is how you hoped it would be. I find that things usually aren’t, though.

Things are A LOT easier since Spender has been replaced. I’ve also had the opportunity to speak with the moshae. She’s really quite something.

The kids are going to hatch pretty soon. If you want to see them fresh out the oven, so to speak, you’ll need to be back within the next two weeks, I think.

Anyway. Have fun out there. And tell my old man to take his supplements. He’s starting to actually need them.

Kesh

 

***

 

**Re: Thoughts so far?**

To: Kesh  
From: Sara

Hey, Kesh!

Things have been super crazy. I’ve been on a few missions already. Scott lets me come along to stuff vaguely archeological so I can build up on something familiar, but I’m not sure it’s quite working, even though I’m grateful. It’ll take some time until all of this feels good. Right now, I’m accompanied not only by my guns but also by a super queasy feeling that won’t leave me throughout the whole duration of every mission. I don’t quite fit in yet if that makes any sense.

Meh. I shouldn’t whine. These things just take a while. New jobs never feel all that amazing at the start.

The moshae really IS quite something, isn’t she? I met her before we left. She’s scary. But she just makes you respect her with one look of hers. I want to know how she does it. You probably have to have reached a certain age before the look works, though.

Ah, damn. I’m not sure we’ll be able to make it in time for the hatching. But the nursery will be my first stop when we make it back.

Name one after me?

Sara

 

***

 

**Names**

To: Sara  
From: Scott

Aiden  
Ainsley  
Alex  
Amari  
Andy  
Ari  
Ash  
Aspen  
Aubrey  
Avery  
Bailey  
Bay  
Blaine  
Blake  
Bobbie  
Brett  
Brook  
Brooklyn  
Caelan  
Cameron  
Campbell  
Carroll  
Carson  
Casey  
Chris  
Clay  
Corey  
Dakota  
Dale  
Dallas  
Delta  
Devin  
Drew  
Dylan  
Easton  
Eli  
Elliott  
Emery  
Finley  
Frances  
Frankie  
Gray  
Harley  
Harper  
Hayden  
Hudson  
Jamie  
Jayden  
Jean  
Jesse  
Jordan  
Jules  
Kaden  
Kai  
Kelly  
Kelsey  
Kendall  
Kennedy  
Landry  
London  
Lou  
Mackenzie  
Mason  
Max  
Monroe  
Morgan  
Pat  
Peyton  
Phoenix  
Quinn  
Reagan  
Reed  
Reese  
Remy  
Riley  
River  
Rory  
Rudy  
Sage  
Sam  
Sawyer  
Shawn  
Skylar  
Stevie  
Sydney  
Taylor  
Val  
West  
Winter

Thoughts?

 

***

 

**Re: Names**

To: Scott  
From: Sara

???????????????

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Names**

To: Sara  
From: Scott

Names. For the baby. Go.

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Re: Names**

To: Scott  
From: Sara

First of all, I’m insulted that you don’t even pretend to consider naming them Sara. Second of all, could you maybe narrow the names down? Some of them make my eyeballs bleed. And why are all of them unisex?

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Re: Re: Names**

To: Sara  
From: Scott

I’m ignoring the first point, just fyi.

And it’s because that way we only have to choose one. And if the kid turns out to be trans, they don’t have to change their name or anything.

I’ll try to narrow them down, you’re right.

 

***

**Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Names**

To: Scott  
From: Sara

And you’re wondering if you’re going to be a good dad. You’ll do just fine.

 

* * *

 

Meeting Sahuna went like this:

Jaal and Sara took a shuttle from Havarl to the daar where Jaal’s family lived.

They got out of the shuttle, Jaal warning her that his mother would probably make a big deal about Jaal being his favorite, when in reality she said that about all her children.

Sahuna came running towards them, first hugging Jaal with what looked to be all her strength, before fixing her gaze on Sara, who inwardly told herself to fuck it and squeezed the living daylights out of her as well.

After that embarrassing mail some weeks ago it didn’t matter all that much if she made a fool out of herself again anyway.

“Hello, future daughter-in-law,” Sahuna greeted her, and when Sara drew back she saw a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Sara scrunched up her nose and ducked her head. “Yeah, I might have been drunk when I wrote that.”

“In our culture everything written in communications is considered binding, you know.”

Sara’s eyes widened out of instinct, even though she knew it had to be bullshit.

“Mother,” Jaal chastised instantly, but his true mother simply patted him on the arm.

“She knows I’m teasing. But she should also know that I would have no objections against it becoming truth in the future.”

And with that she asked them to come in where Sara met all the five-hundred-thousand of Jaal’s brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, cousins, aunts, uncles and so on and so forth, et cetera, et cetera.

By the end of the night she had been asked the weirdest questions (“Do humans poop? I have a book that says everybody poops.”) and had been told the nicest things (“I haven’t ever seen Jaal quite so in love as he is with you.”). She’d been hugged and prodded, patted and wrestled with.

Back in Jaal’s bed, cuddled together tightly on the small surface, and a hundred percent sure that she wouldn’t catch even one wink during the night, Sara felt exhausted and exhilarated.

“Do you like them?” Jaal asked her, trying for a casual tone, but missing by a mile.

“I _love_ them,” Sara told him honestly and kissed his brow.

 

* * *

 

**Rem-Tech 101**

To: Peebee  
From: Sara

Hey,

Not sure if you’re still up. I can’t sleep. Jaal is snoring so damn loud I’m sure it’s killing something inside of me with every exhale. Maybe my hearing is just trying to off itself bit by bit, who knows.

Anyway, I just thought that maybe you might be willing to give me a crash course in rem-tech? I already know a lot about prothean stuff. Not sure if the two are similar at all, but it should be better than nothing, right?

Sara

 

***

 

**Re: Rem-Tech 101**

To: Sara  
From: Peebee

I never sleep. (I bet my looks are even more impressive now!)

Should Jaal not be in the process of crushing your body as well as killing off your will to live, you can come right over.

Bring some working gloves, maybe.

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Rem-Tech 101**

To: Peebee  
From: Sara

Oh, thank god.

(Now I’m just thinking the face paint is for hiding the bags under your eyes… )

 

***

 

**What about …**

To: Sara  
From: Scott

Lennon? I also like Remington. Remy for short.

Yay?

 

***

 

**Re: What about …**

To: Scott  
From: Sara

Why do you already hate the kid? Did it kick you through Jill’s belly? Did you have a dream in which it spoke to you in demonic tongues?

If you call the kid Lennon they’ll be ‘Lemon’ within seconds at school.

And Remington? Do you want your kid to get beat up? It sounds like it should belong to some old English earl. Or maybe a butler? ‘Remington, would you fetch a lemon for me, old sport?’

No.

Have better ideas.

Sara

 

***

 

**Wanna have a little something-something later?**

To: Jaal  
From: Sara

Hey, hot stuff!

Wanna hang out later? I want to try something. Of the sexual variety. If you know what I mean ;)

And later a movie maybe? With snacks of course.

Also, I wanted to tell you: I love you, I love you, I love you.

And I miss you. Tons.

Sara

 

***

 

**Re: Wanna have a little something-something later?**

To: Sara  
From: Jaal

Dearest,

You are aware that I’m two rooms away from you? And we just talked an hour ago?

Your dearest,

Jaal

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Wanna have a little something-something later?**

To: Jaal  
From: Sara

Yeah. So?

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Re: Wanna have a little something-something later?**

To: Sara  
From: Jaal

Nothing. I simply have to remind myself sometimes that I’m not dreaming.

Yes to everything.

I love you more. Always and forever.

Your dearest,

Jaal

 

* * *

 

Becoming part of the team didn’t happen overnight.

Jaal, Peebee, Vetra, all of them, were happy to have her there and Sara didn’t think it had been a lie when some of them had told her that they had always considered her part of Scott’s little posse of orphans and miscreants.

But the thing about belonging to a team was that you had to earn your place. You had to find out what your role was. Where you fit.

Peebee was the tech-whiz and also resident archeologist. They didn’t need Sara to contribute here, even though Peebee let her poke around her shop (which, as it turned out, was an honor, because she was pretty touchy about who touched her stuff. Pun. Ha.)

Cora was the biotic (Sara didn’t have any talent for that), Drack was a walking, talking war machine, Liam the comic relief as well as team builder, Vetra the smuggler, Jaal the cultural correspondent and sniper… Even the on board crew seemed to fill out all the needed positions as pilot, head science officer, engineer, and doctor.

Sara felt like all she could contribute was bad humor and witty one-liners. She was the pathfinder’s sister. She was Jaal’s girlfriend. If being allowed on the _Tempest_ at all felt like nepotism to her, how did it have to look to outsiders?

So, she tried. And maybe a little too hard.

She put too much cheer into everything, and then too much seriousness. She tried to play the hard ass only to slack off during the next mission. Jaal told her to stop. She heard Liam ask Lexi if mood swings could be part of her lingering trauma.

She spent nights cuddled up to Jaal, his snores her only company during her brooding.

It took a few missions until she found out what her role was.

Scott had taken out Peebee and here to talk to some of Sloane’s people (if you could belong to a person that was dead, that was). Scott wanted to give them a chance, even though they had on and off been terrorizing half of Kadara.

Scott had just started talking with their leader, while Peebee was busily trying to avoid eye-contact with one of the asari standing behind them, when Sara got the bad feeling that one of the guys in the back was hiding something.

Rather than inform Scott or draw attention to her hunch, she made a split-second decision. She punched a few buttons on her omni-tool and _zip – groan – clang_ – the guy was lying on the ground, shields overloaded and unconscious.

The whole scene turned into utter chaos within seconds.

People were drawing their guns, Peebee gave a shrill giggle-scream, and Scott was staring at her, red in the face, mouth drawn.

But before anybody could say anything coherent, Sara stepped up to the unconscious guy, hands held up, declaring her good intentions, lest one of Sloane’s people shoot her, and rummaged around the guy’s pockets until she found a detonator that, as it turned out, would have blown them all to pieces if activated.

From then on, she had her place, her role.

She was the one whose gut you could trust.

 

* * *

 

“Hey, Sahuna!”

“Hello, Sara. I hope you aren’t busy?”

 “Nah. This day has been biting me in the ass.”

“How so? And I hope this is a figure of speech. If not, I’m really looking forward to your explanation.”

“Ha! I almost wish it was. Just kidding, obviously. But I had to be very diplomatic today and I really didn’t feel like it. Some people are hard to work with, let me tell you.”

“I understand. The resistance is the same. One should think working towards the same goal would make your working environment more focused and driven. Instead, people are simply asses.”

“Looks like we have at least one constant in the universe. It’s just that the Initiative is based on so much bureaucratic crap that people are actually mad at you for getting something done fast.”

“Does ‘fast’ translate to ‘not observing proper protocol’?”

“It might?”

“That’s my girl.”

“Ha. You want to talk to Jaal? I can go look if he’s around.”

“No, that’s alright. I talked with him a few days ago. I want to hear about you.”

“Doesn’t Jaal tell you every little thing I do each day? I’m disappointed. Does he even love me anymore?”

“He loves you very much and you know that.”

“Yeah, I do. Know that.”

“Sara?”

“It’s just a nice feeling, you know? Not ever having to doubt where I stand with him. You did a great job raising him. Not sure if it’s weird telling you that, but there it is.”

“I’m happy you appreciate my efforts.”

“I so do.”

“It’s not a lie that I love all of my children the same. But you know… Jaal is special.”

“You’re preaching to the choir.”

“What?”

“I know. I agree.”

“So, tell me about the thing with the Eiroch. Is it true you backflipped off of one?”

“I so totally did. It was awesome. We were – “

 

* * *

 

**Mission?**

To: Sara  
From: Vetra

Hey, Sara!

I have a lead on some smuggling going on dirtside. Some little punks are apparently robbing a band of angara blind who put out caches and medicine to help the resistance.

You interested in helping out?

Vetra

 

***

 

**Re: Mission?**

To: Vetra  
From: Sara

Hey,

Um, you know I am, but shouldn’t you take this to Scott? He’s traipsing about with Cora and Drack right now, as far as I know.

Sara

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Mission?**

To: Sara  
From: Vetra

Sure, I could ask him. But it would take time and we would have to regroup back at the Tempest, because Scott didn’t bring along the Nomad. So, I figured, why not take the shorter, more effective route?

Anyway, does it really matter which Ryder I do this with?

I don’t have to tell you how Jaal feels about Kadara, so I’m thinking maybe Liam could come along?

Vetra

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Re: Mission?**

To: Vetra  
From: Sara

Okay, cool. I’ll go ask him. When do you want to meet?

 

***

 

**Help?**

To: Sara  
From: Liam

Sooo, I might have flooded the kitchen.

Come help me hide the evidence?

 

***

 

**Re: Help?**

To: Liam  
From: Sara

I’m getting the feeling you shouldn’t be allowed in there.

On my way.

 

***

**A really nice name for the bump**

To: Gil  
From: Sara

Kallo has a nice ring to it, no?

And you could use that for a boy and a girl.

 

***

 

**Re: A really nice name for the bump**

To: Sara  
From: Gil

Don’t even joke about that. He and I may have called a truce but this is taking it too far.

Why are you writing me about this anyway?

 

***

 

**Re: Re: A really nice name for the bump**

To: Gil  
From: Sara

Scott’s been harassing me about helping him choose a name.

I’m done helping, because he keeps saying no to everything I like, even when I’m not actually trolling him.

Make it stop.

Or better – choose a name and put an end to this!

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Re: A really nice name for the bump**

To: Sara  
From: Gil

I feel you.

Stars above, do I feel you.

I’ll try my best. Don’t hope for a miracle, though.

***

**Re: Re: Re: Re: Dish!**

To: Sara  
From: Peebee

Okay, okay, I get it. You don’t want to tell me.

But just so you know, I think you’re being selfish. Think about what we all could learn from you! How happy you could make so, so, so many people.

Apparently, you don’t care.

I get it.

So long.

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Dish!**

To: Peebee  
From: Sara

I’M NOT TELLING YOU ABOUT JAAL’S DICK AND THAT IS FINAL, PEEBEE!

If you want to know about angaran physiology I suggest you either ask Lexi for an anatomical study or you go out and get yourself an angaran lover.

Jaal’s brother Rollu is still single. I’ll give him your comm.

Sara

 

***

 

**Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Dish!**

To: Sara  
From: Peebee

WHAT? NO!

SARA!

 

* * *

 

Sex with Jaal was – 

It was – it was just, it –

It was knowing that there was no doing wrong when it came to him. If something didn’t work they talked about it until it did or they scrapped the idea. No hard feelings.

It was heated glances over consoles, was stifled whimpers when they brushed shoulders on their way to their quarters.

It was about love and consent and fun.

It was moans and sweat and the wet sounds of two bodies becoming one and the people making it so enjoying the hell out of it.

It was believing him, when he told her, she was the most beautiful being in the whole galaxy. The whole universe.

It was about loving and being loved.

It was about Jaal and Sara. Sara and Jaal.

 

* * *

 

Months later they were all gathered on Eos where it had all begun. Well, technically, it had begun on Habitat 7, but Scott was still slightly uncomfortable that it was called Ryder I now and, anyway, it had been on Eos where he and the team had first made any impact.

They were shuffling around Prodromos, Liam playing badly executed soccer with a few guys. Most of the rest of the crew were strewn about the outpost. Gil had gone to talk to Jill and her baby bump that was officially going to be a citizen of Andromeda in a few weeks’ time. Their relationship was still on the mend, but getting better bit by bit.

Peebee was busy sitting on a bunch of stairs and sending messages back and forth with Rollu (who would have thought Sara’s spitefully impulsive decision would actually lead to a full-blown crush?). Drack had gone to help with some sort of latrine-related incident Sara was too afraid to ask about.

She had no idea where the rest of them were, but Scott came to stand right beside her, up on the little ledge that let you overlook the outpost. It was where you could really see how far they had come. That they had made something out of nothing.

“It’s amazing. What you did here,” she told him, hand shielding her eyes from the sun and the strands of hair framing her face whipping in the wind.

“Are you proud of me?” he asked her, teasing, but Sara heard a small request in his tone, making her grin gently at him.

“Couldn’t be prouder,” she said, gaze as steady as could be, and meaning it with all she had.

Scott smiled boyishly at her and then turned back to look at Prodromos as well, shoulders relaxing and stance loosening.

To think that she’d actually believed that Scott didn’t need her anymore. That her opinion meant nothing to him. She almost snorted. It was laughable now. Scott might have matured and picked up some stuff. He might have become more independent and capable. But those were all good things. None of them precluded him needing her and her approval.

They were still Sara and Scott Ryder. Their family was bigger now, but they were still family to each other. Of course they were.

“Gil still with the bump?”

Speaking of family and all.

Scott grimaced at her. “I wish you would stop calling the baby that.”

“Well, since you’re being boring and don’t want to know the sex…”

“What does the sex matter, anyway?” Scott shrugged. “You know what we will name them in any case, so stop being annoying about it. And stop calling them ‘bump’.”

“Right.” Sara steeled herself and said the name in the most pompous way possible. “Emery!”

Scott rolled his eyes. “Why do you hate the name so much?”

“I don’t hate it.” She paused. “But it means ‘industrious ruler’, and Scott, I mean, are you trying to build an empire? Are you trying to tell me that? Is Emery your heir? Will you impregnate Jill again so you can have an heir _and_ a spare? Will you chop her head off if she can’t get pregnant again?”

Faced with Sara’s droll tone, Scott let out a noise that sounded somewhere between a growl and a quiet scream. “We just liked the name. And it also means ‘brave’ and that’s something they’ll need around here in any case. And it’s not like you have any ground to argue ‘princess’,” he told her off with narrowed eyes, prompting Sara to stick out her tongue at him.

“You’re just bummed that Scott doesn’t mean anything beyond being Scottish. Which you aren’t,” she groused but let the matter lie. If they wanted to put some sort of hidden legacy on a tiny baby, then that was Gil’s and Scott’s thing. Sara would have gone with something different. But it wasn’t _her_ kid.

“So, _is_ he still with Jill?” she asked again, indicating that she was done needling him about his naming choices.

“Yup. He likes to talk to them. It’s only four weeks until the due date.” Scott suddenly got more somber, staring into the distance, face oddly hard. But maybe that was the wrong word. Maybe he just looked decisive. Ready to take on the future. Sara still wasn’t quite used to seeing Scott like that. Though she had lost any lingering doubts she might have had about his leading abilities during her time on the _Tempest_. Scott may not have been a born leader – like Emery was going to be, ha! – but he had grown into his role nicely.

Her brother stuck his hands into his pockets and angled his upper body towards her.

“I’m going to take some time off, after all. With Gil.”

Sara’s brows shot up. “Okay? I thought you were just going to cut back a little? Not that I’m saying you shouldn’t take the time. I just want to know why the change of heart.”

Scott sighed. “I didn’t really feel like I could take time off before. I wanted to, but… I mean, can you just put down the whole Pathfinder mantle and pick it up some time later? I don’t think it works like that. I mean, I know that it doesn’t.”

He shook his head.

“But I’ve been thinking … I don’t want the kid to grow up seeing me only every once in a while. I don’t want to be the distant parent. Because we both know Gil isn’t going to be it, the way he has been the last few months.” He grinned fondly. “Gil has been approved to switch to a post dirtside. To here, actually. Prodromos. They need an engineer to help with the hydraulics and Gil said he’d like to have a poke at it.”

Sara drew together her brows. “And what about you?” Surely he didn’t want to stop being pathfinder altogether? But he had already established that he wouldn’t.

“I’m going to stay here with him. We’ve got a little house in the make and everything. It’ll just be for the first two months. During that time, but also after …” He shot her a smile that made her heart hammer a little faster.

“How would you like to share the whole pathfinder shtick with me and Cora?”

Sara’s mouth dropped open. It seemed like her body wasn’t capable of doing much else. She tried to get a few words out, but nothing coherent seemed to want to form on her tongue. Her? Pathfinder? Was he nuts?

Scott snorted. “Yeah, I know. It’s a lot. But you didn’t think that all the missions these last few months were typical? That I made you go out without me so often?”

Well, that was true. When they had a bunch of things to do around the same area, Scott more often than not had made her take out her own team once she had found her footing. Sara liked to bring Peebee and Jaal. Sometimes Vetra. But she hadn’t read much of anything into that, especially, since she’d had no reason to think Scott would want to take a break from his job.

“Cora has seniority. But she doesn’t want to have SAM in her brain, ultimately.” He shrugged. “Maybe that was just an excuse, but even though she really wanted the job when I got it, she doesn’t want it anymore now.”

“But you said she and I …” Sara started feebly, leaving the sentence hanging.

Scott grinned at her. “She’s going to help you out. Much like she did with me. She’s the sturdiest shoulder you’ll ever lean on, believe you me.”

He seesawed on his feet, a nervous movement that was so Scott that it managed to rip Sara out of her shocked state.

She cleared her throat, where her heart had decided to wedge itself for posterity. “But … I mean, the pathfinder protocols can’t be transferred unless you die, and I really don’t want you to off yourself Scott, so …” She giggled a little shrilly, before biting her lip. Hard.

Scott rolled his eyes, but, as it turned out, it wasn’t at her. “You forget who our father was. SAM drew my attention to one of dad’s terminal notes. Apparently, SAM can be present in two brains at the same time, as long as those brains are _Ryder_ brains.”

Sara shot him a deadpan look. “Are you freaking kidding me, Scott?”

Scott huffed out a laugh. “Nepotism Dad for the win?”

She shook her head, still not quite believing that this could be happening. “And Tann? Addison? The others? They can’t all be in favor of this.” Kesh probably liked the idea, if only because it had the potential to piss off the brass.

“Turns out you earned some brownie points for essentially killing the Archon.”

“Uh, no. That was you.”

“ _Uh, no,_ ” Scott mimicked her, “it was both of us. Turns out we both have legend potential, or whatever.” Scott huffed, probably about the absurdity of it all. Sara had a hard time wrapping her head around it herself. “In any case, they’re game. It also helps that Jaal has apparently been singing your praises to the moshae.”

Sara groaned, face-palming hard, while Scott let out a cascade of snorting laughs.

“You are, apparently, a paragon on interspecies unity.”

“Is that what the kids are calling it these days?” Sara mumbled, to which Scott simply shook his head.

“Don’t ask me. It doesn’t matter anyway.”

He looked at her, brows and shoulders alike drawn up and head tilted.

Sara frowned. “What?”

“ _So_ , do you want the job? You want to go pathfinding on your own for a bit and then share the post with me? You’ll end up getting your own crew and everything. Your own ship. I won’t even try to mind too much if Jaal ends up defecting to your team.”

Sara laughed incredulously. She wasn’t even approaching being able to believe this.

Her own crew? Her own ship? Exploring the galaxy on her own?

Scott probably thought he was making her gag for it, telling her about all these things she could have.

Her brother was still a little slow sometimes.

“Do you think… maybe they have a slightly bigger ship than the _Tempest_?” Sara asked, small smile tugging at her mouth.

“Bigger? You want to outship me, or what?”

Sara failed at keeping in her laugh when Scott didn’t immediately understand what she was getting at.

“Big enough for two pathfinders, is what I mean.”

She could see that her brother was stunned. He’d probably thought he was offering her all she could ever want, when in reality, what she had right now was already so close to perfect, she didn’t need that big of a change.

“Because, you know, pathfinding sounds fun. But it wouldn’t be half as fun without the original crew. It wouldn’t be half as fun without my little bro.”

A sort of unbelieving smile started to spread on her brother’s face and it was taking up more and more space, stretching his mouth and creating little wrinkles in the corners of his eyes. “You sure, sis?”

“A hundred percent.”

When Scott hugged her then, she felt like she had passed some sort of test. Though she didn’t think Scott had made this whole thing into one on purpose. But the way he pressed his body close to hers, and the way he rested his cheek on her hair the way he had last done back in a different galaxy, made her think that they had finally found their way back together after all that had happened between them.

But now Sara was surer of Scott’s love for her and she would bet all her credits that he was surer of her love for him, as well. They hadn’t only managed to bridge the gap between them created during her coma, they had also made this new bridge something sturdier and more long-lasting than the old one had been.

It had taken them some time. But now, finally, they were at a place where they both were happy.

Andromeda may have seemed like a bust at the start of it all and the first few months of their time here may have seemed impossible to turn into something good.

But now? Now they had a home in the making. And a family. Friends. Love.

“Sara! Scott!” they heard a deep voice yell from down below.

When they had successfully extricated themselves from each other they looked down the ledge they were still standing on and saw Jaal and Gil standing there, Jaal waving at them with bold moves, while Gil had propped his hands on his hips.

“What?” Sara yelled back at them.

“Peebee and Drack started a drinking game. Come watch!” Gil answered somewhat impatiently.

Sara shared a look with her brother that made them both crack a grin simultaneously.

“Let’s go?” Scott asked her and she nodded decisively, shoving him down the first few steps of the way. 

“Let’s.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, people. This is it. Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who has stuck by me and this series till the end! I hope you're happy with everything turned out. It was really amazing writing this and getting to be part of all of your lives a little ;)


End file.
